Subject: PANUPS: US Supreme Court Upholds Delaney Clause

From: Pesticide Action Network North America Reg Ctr <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 23 Feb 93 16:49:37 PST

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PESTICIDE ACTION NETWORK NORTH AMERICA UPDATES SERVICE
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U.S. SUPREME COURT DECLINES TO WEAKEN DELANEY CLAUSE

February 23, 1993

The United States Supreme Court announced on Monday, February 22 
that it would not hear arguments seeking to overturn the Ninth 
Circuit Court of Appeals' decision that holds the U.S. Environmental 
Protection Agency  (EPA)  to a strict interpretation of the Delaney 
Clause in the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which prohibits 
carcinogenic pesticides and other additives in processed foods. (see 
PANUPS, February 4, 1993.)

The Natural Resources Defense Council, Public Citizen, and the AFL-
CIO brought suit against EPA in response to a 1988 EPA 
announcement that cancer-causing pesticides would be permissible if 
they posed "negligible risk" to human health.  Under that standard, 
the pesticides benomyl, phosmet, mancozeb, and trifluralin were 
ruled an exception to the Delaney Clause provisions. In July of 1992, 
the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously that EPA did 
not have such discretion, and that the language of the Delaney Clause 
is "clear and mandatory" in providing for a strong standard of 
excluding cancer-causing substances from the food supply. EPA did 
not appeal the decision, but an industry advocacy group, the National 
Agricultural Chemicals Association, brought the appeal to the 
Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court's denial of the appeal affirms a zero-risk standard 
for 32 pesticides EPA has identified as potential carcinogens. Al 
Meyerhoff, attorney for NRDC, praised the Supreme Court's decision, 
commenting that "at a time when cancer strikes one in three 
Americans, we should not lower our guard against this disease."

FOR MORE INFORMATION: Al Meyerhoff, Lawrie Mott, NRDC, 77 
Stevenson St., suite 1250, San Francisco, CA 94105, phone (415) 777-
0220;  Erik Olson, Sarah Silver, NRDC, 1350 New York Avenue NW, 
Washington, DC 20005, phone (202) 783-7800

Sources: San Francisco Examiner, February 22, 1993, San Francisco 
Chronicle, February 23, 1993,  NRDC News Release, 1993; see PANUPS 
February 4, 1993 on EPA and the Delaney Clause for other background 
sources.

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