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Syngenta’s Secrets — What the Company Didn’t Tell the EPA About Its ‘Blockbuster’ Paraquat Pesticide
Sweden started ringing the alarm bell more than 40 years ago, banning the weed killing chemical paraquat in 1983. One by one, other countries around the world did the same as evidence of paraquat risks to human health mounted. Even the Chinese government, which owns the longtime paraquat maker Syngenta, halted use of the pesticide a decade ago after conducting its own studies on paraquat safety and finding troubling results.
In the US, Vermont also recently banned paraquat, citing risks that include an association between paraquat and Parkinson’s disease shown in years of scientific research. And California regulators announced paraquat makers voluntarily agreed to stop selling the chemical after the state identified health concerns in new research. Several federal lawmakers have pushed for a nationwide ban.
Yet amid the global cloud of concern, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to greenlight paraquat use on millions of acres, and has downplayed the significance of science linking paraquat to Parkinson’s, an incurable brain disease. The agency said in June it would hold a roundtable over the summer to re-examine the “safety challenges” associated with paraquat. But no such event was held or has been scheduled.
US Environment Agency Let Bayer Pick Regulations for Destructive Weedkiller, Documents Show
The EPA allowed pesticide giant Bayer to pick from a menu of regulation options for the controversial and destructive weedkiller dicamba, newly released internal agency documents show. The documents provide an unusually clear look into the process of developing pesticide regulations, which is typically done out of public view. It shows in detail how the EPA asked Bayer which regulations it wanted, received a response from Bayer, then put Bayer’s choices into a proposed federal rule.
Dicamba is drift prone and kills vegetation and crops for miles around fields where it is sprayed, and is linked to liver cancer and Non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Courts have twice ordered it off the market because of its drift problems, but the EPA has re-approved it.
The EPA solicited Bayer’s input on the level of restrictions to limit dicamba volatility and runoff, ranging from more protective to less protective, records released in ongoing litigation over the substance show. The EPA concluded one presentation with a slide entitled “Registrant response needed” which posed the question “Which mitigation option to go forward with?”
EPA Withdraws Guidance Preventing PFAS From Entering Drinking Water
In the latest regulatory rollback on toxic chemicals, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has withdrawn Biden-era guidance on how to prevent PFAS pollution in drinking water. In a memo dated August 11, 2026, the agency’s Office of Water identified several documents it deems “appropriate for rescission,” including a 2022 memo that encouraged states to use existing Clean Water Act authorities to prevent toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from entering drinking water.
The memo also said that, while not legally binding, the agency has a responsibility to ensure that its guidance “reflects existing law, regulations, Executive Orders, and current policies, and that such guidance is informed by stakeholder engagement and public comment, as appropriate.”
Under that premise, documents related to National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits were deemed appropriate for rescission. Under the Clean Water Act, NPDES permits regulate wastewater discharges by limiting pollutant levels and establishing mandatory monitoring and reporting requirements.
Federal Judge Sides With Manufacturers, Blocks New Mexico’s PFAS Labeling Rule
New Mexico’s effort to require manufacturers to label consumer products that contain so-called ‘forever chemicals’ infringes on commercially protected speech, according to a preliminary injunction issued Wednesday by U.S. District Judge Margaret Strickland. The disputed rule stems from the PFAS Protection Act, which the New Mexico Legislature passed and Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham enacted last year. It would require manufacturers to label consumer products containing PFAS — aka per and polyfluoroalkyl substances.
The New Mexico Environmental Improvement Board sanctioned the rule in March.
Studies show PFAS is linked to kidney and reproductive cancers, decreased fertility, fetal developmental delays, disruption of immune responses and liver function in humans.
The American Chemistry Council, which advocates for chemical manufacturers, and several national manufacturer organizations, sued the New Mexico Environment Department on July 1. The organizations argued that the state requirement violates the First Amendment by enforcing manufacturers to communicate a government-mandated message and asked for the court to stop implementation of the rule set for next year.
A Big Chemical Company Is Trying a New Way to Recycle. Neighbors Are Worried.
The contraption sits in Building No. 30, a nondescript brick facility on the fenced-off campus of W.R. Grace & Co., a major manufacturer of specialty chemicals and materials.
To a nonscientist, it looks like it came out of the movie “Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory.” The 24-by-32-foot maze of chambers, gaskets, gauges and pipes has jokingly been nicknamed Martha by some of the technicians who run it. The company hopes it will improve the way plastic gets recycled around the globe.
Next door to Grace’s sprawling Maryland headquarters is Cedar Creek, a tidy subdivision in Columbia, about 30 miles from Washington. On a recent afternoon, moms chatted in driveways, kids rode bikes and played tag, and some neighbors said they feared Grace’s contraption could be putting them in danger.
