There are harmful administrative decisions that have immediate but reversable negative consequences. But what of decisions that are reversable in policy only – those whose effects will almost immediately lay the groundwork for widespread loss of human life, irreversible ecosystem devastation, and market/cultural blight? That second supposition describes the Trump administration’s latest EPA approval of several new pesticides, among them isoscycloseram and, soon, five others similarly classed PFAS-containing sprays for treating golf courses and a wide array of our farm produce.
Anyone who follows the environmental beat has heard of the massive, long-lasting harm PFAS chemicals have imposed on people and the environment. Known as forever chemicals because they are nearly indestructible by natural processes, PFASs persist in the environment almost indefinitely, kind of a one-and-done forever type of contamination.
To give you some idea of the threat this decisions poses, here’s a quick four-point ChatGPT summary of the history, damage, and known harms these chemicals have caused:
- Workers in nonstick-pan factories (using PFAS such as PFOA) showed elevated PFAS in their blood as early as the 1980 study of fluorochemical workers — marking one of the first documented links between occupational PFAS exposure and human internal contamination. Wikipedia+1
- PFAS contamination at Superfund and other toxic-waste sites has created massive cleanup burdens — private-sector cleanup costs alone are estimated at $11.1 to $22 billion (present value) for just PFOS/PFOA-contaminated sites. U.S. Chamber of Commerce+1
- At Buckley Air Force Base in my home state of Colorado, PFAS from firefighting foam has infiltrated groundwater at levels (e.g., combined PFOA + PFOS ~ 205,000 ppt) far exceeding safe standards, potentially exposing surrounding communities to heightened cancer, liver, and immune-system risks. TorHoerman Law+1
- PFAS exposure (ingested or via contaminated water/food) is associated with serious health problems — including kidney and testicular cancer, thyroid disease, elevated cholesterol, liver damage, immune suppression, reproductive harm, and adverse birth outcomes. NRDC+1
Considering this information, especially the multi-billion-dollar cost associated with the clean-up of PFAS chemicals, a couple of questions immediately come to mind.
- Why would someone approve spraying (permanently contaminating) large portions of America’s farmland, potentially rendering it toxic for decades to come?
- We already close our markets to third-world nations that use similar chemicals. Because these applications will render both our land and water far more PFAS toxic, why are decision-makers overlooking the long-term harm to American farm interests – potentially the permanent destruction of major international markets, like China, Europe, and other areas that are increasingly limiting the level of acceptable PFAS contamination in their produce.
- Who is assigning liability for the aquifers that lie beneath these lands, and what does this mean for people drawing well-water from these aquifers?
Given our experience with these chemicals and their potential harms, I believe these decisions are wrong, bordering on criminal. It is one thing for the Biden administration to approve one of these threats due to necessity and another thing entirely for the Trump administration to open the floodgates because the wolves are minding the proverbial hen house.
I believe everyone should get on the phone to their state and federal representatives and scream to high heavens about this.
First and foremost, farmers and farm works should call and, to the best of their ability, they should boycott these products. Many farmers supported Trump in the short-term because they were not thinking of the long-term consequences. As I see it, such short-term thinking is one of the primary weaknesses of Trump voters. But for those of you who live in farming communities, it might be helpful to our cause to point out the threat using these products might mean to their continued access to first-world markets. They just might listen and side with us in the voting booth, if for no other reason than long-term self-preservation.
This story should be pushed in every local newspaper and into the broader mainstream media. We should contact 60-minutes, ProPublica, and other investigative media outlets so they can run with this story. What would MAHA think of these decisions when they voted for the exact opposite outcome? Really, little Johnny is now going to be eating “healthy” vegetables and drinking “fresh” water destined to be increasingly tainted with known carcinogens?
If you do decide to amplify this story, as I hope you will, be forewarned: There is one easy rebuttal that you will have to deal with. “Because PFAS are extremely persistent in the environment and bioaccumulate, they have become nearly ubiquitous: they can be found in human blood globally (including in women’s breastmilk and cord blood), meaning even people with no known industrial exposure may carry PFAS and suffer associated long-term risks.”
So, people you talk to may counter with, “What’s the point! We are already affected by these chemicals every day. And, unlike the environment, our bodies are actually pretty good at filtering them out, via our urine and sweet.”
But here’s the catch. The greater the environmental concentration, the harder it is for us to reduce our personal PFAS burdens because, gradually, they will enter our bodies faster than they can be filtered out. That is the real danger here: The concentration in our own bodies increasing in parallel with environmental concentrations because we are what we eat. Eating increasingly more PFAS’s will become unavoidable if these decisions are allowed to stand.
That is it. That is my pitch. Please spread the word about the potential harm of these decisions to whoever will listen. Recommend this article. Post it on your Facebook feeds. Speak about it on your Tic Tok reels. Amplify it on your blogs and podcasts. Talk about it with your friends. Bring the question up to any farmers you know. Call and write your reps, and do anything else that might seem helpful. Trump is increasingly weak right now. Let’s add yet another weight to his slowly sinking ship.
Thanks for taking a moment to hear me out and have a great upcoming holiday season!
