SAFETY

GAO Cites Flaws In Pesticide Incident Reporting

EPA's collection of data on incidents of adverse reactions to
pesticides often falls short of providing information enough to
determine whether action may be needed to protect the public
health, the General Accounting Office has reported. 

But the agency is taking some steps, including a major rewrite of
the FIFRA Section 6(a)(2) rule requiring adverse reaction reports
from registrants, to improve its collection and analysis of
incident data, GAO reported to Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who
requested the review last year.

Existing guidance on 6(a)(2) reporting goes back to the 1970's
and is vague about what information is to be submitted, the
report said.

The revision, which is not yet ready for publication as a final
rule, will list specific requirements on data to be reported,
including identification of the pesticide involved and a detailed
summary of the incident being reported, the GAO said. 

About 87% of the adverse reaction reports to EPA come from
registrants, GAO auditors were told by OPP, but the agency's
Incident Data System, which was automated in 1992, also receives
reports from states and other sources.

Because of staffing limitations, however, some 3,000 of the more
than 12,000 reports received from 1992 through April 1995 had not
yet been entered into the system, the GAO said.

EPA is working with four companies that submit large numbers of
reports on pesticide exposure incidents to explore the
feasibility of electronic submissions, the congressional agency
said.

The American Association of Poison Control Centers amasses a
considerable amount of data on incidents involving pesticides as
well as other toxic substances, but the cost of obtaining such
information is high, GAO reported.

"Exposure data on a single poison for 1990-93 would cost $4,400,"
the report said. "Abstracts of individual case records, when
available, are priced at $150." 

As an alternative to paying for such data itself, EPA has at
times required registrants to purchase the information, GAO said. 
This was done, the report noted, after OPP identified 28
chemicals as acutely toxic to agricultural workers on the basis
of data from California, toxicity of the pesticides, and usage
levels.

As a result of that project, GAO said, EPA has proposed
mitigation measures to reduce risks posed by five pesticides
considered to be the most hazardous to workers. 

(From: P&TCN Vol. 23, No. 40)