GRANTS PASS, Ore. (AP) — The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will impose restrictions on spraying three agricultural pesticides near salmon streams.
The agency said Monday that the decision comes after manufacturers of the chemicals diazinon, malathion and chlorpyrifos refused to adopt the limits voluntarily.
In a letter to EPA, a lawyer for Dow AgroSciencies said the company feels there is no scientific evidence the pesticides are killing or jeopardizing the survival of salmon.
The EPA action stems from a lawsuit filed by anti-pesticide groups in 2001.
It comes a year and a half after NOAA Fisheries Service found the pesticides threaten the survival of 27 species of salmon and steelhead in the West by interfering with their sense of smell.
