The outdoor industry has been grappling with its use of PFAS — so-called forever chemicals — for years. As their toxic effects on wildlife and humans became more widely understood, conservation groups and customers pushed brands to eliminate these chemicals, which are often found in items like waterproof jackets.
And now there’s a new potential source of PFAS in nature to contend with. This month, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved the use of isocycloseram, a compound classified along with other forever chemicals, for use as a pesticide on crops.
What Are PFAS?
PFAS are a kind of manmade chemical. They became popular in the 1950s, and were used for everything from nonstick cookware to cleaning products to stain-resistant carpeting.
To make PFAS, scientists replace the hydrogen in an organic molecule with fluorine. The fluorine bonds very strongly to the carbon, making them slow to degrade, which is where the term “forever chemicals” comes from.
For years, researchers have documented the potential negative health effects of PFAS on humans. They include increased risks of certain cancers, lowering of the immune system’s ability to fight infections, delayed onset of puberty in girls, showed evidence of liver damage, and increased risk of childhood obesity.
PFAS have become extremely widespread. Researchers have found above-advised levels of PFAS across California, and particularly in communities of color. According to a study by the Environmental Working Group, over 172 million Americans rely on drinking water that has tested positive for PFAS.
What Is Isocycloseram?
There is some debate about whether isocycloseram qualifies as a PFAS. This chemical has one fluorinated carbon, which, according to groups like Beyond Pesticides, qualifies it as such.
The EPA, however, said that “(PFAS) are defined in certain contexts as substances containing two or more fluorinated carbons, and in others as substances containing one or more fluorinated carbons.” The agency does not have a strict definition of PFAS.
When it comes to agricultural uses, the EPA stated that isocycloseram will help control pests like the Colorado potato beetle, the diamondback moth, and the Asian citrus psyllid, which target potatoes, brassica vegetables, and citrus, respectively. It can also help deal with household pests like cockroaches, termites, and bed bugs.
Is Isocycloseram Safe?
What the EPA Says
The EPA stated that this chemical posed “no human health risks of concern” and no risks to “aquatic and terrestrial plants” when used as directed.
However, there are several other types of species that may be affected. As stated on isocycloseram’s label, “This pesticide is toxic to fish and highly toxic to aquatic invertebrates. Do not discharge effluent containing this product into lakes, streams, ponds, estuaries, oceans, or other waters.”
The EPA also disclosed that it “may affect insect pollinators from spray application” and “can also cause chronic risks to birds and mammals ingesting treated rapeseed.”
According to the agency, it’s a “reasonable expectation” that bees will face exposure to the chemical while in or near a treated field of crops. Despite the risks to these animals, the EPA concluded that use of isocycloseram is unlikely to jeopardize any species’ survival, nor harm any critical habitat.
What Opponents Say
This summer, Beyond Pesticides and the Pesticide and Agroecology Network (PAN), two nonprofits, released a public letter calling for the EPA not to approve isocycloseram. The groups objected on the grounds of the above-stated risks to certain species.
Additionally, if seeds are coated in the chemical as a protectant, the groups claimed that this could contaminate drinking water. The letter also argued that the health risks to farm workers who come in contact with this chemical are not clear.
The groups took issue with the government agency’s case-by-case approach to PFAS. They stated that “the PFAS contamination problem calls for a comprehensive policy rather than the ‘whack-a-mole’ approach to chasing individual contamination crises after they have occurred and inflicted serious harm to people’s health.”
Isocycloseram is not approved for use in the E.U. The University of Hertfordshire’s Pesticide Properties Database categorized its eco-toxicity alert as “high” and its environmental fate as “very persistent.”
Nonprofit conservation group Center for Biological Diversity opposed the approval of the chemical. “To approve more PFAS pesticides amid the growing awareness of the serious, long-term dangers from these forever chemicals is absurdly shortsighted,” Nathan Donley, environmental health science director at the Center for Biological Diversity, said in a press release.
“The undeniable reality is that the Trump administration is knowingly putting the nation’s children at greater risk of developing serious reproductive and liver harms for generations to come.”
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