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Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

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Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

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Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Report: Feds Not Doing Enough about Pesticides and Endangered Species

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Friday, May 3, 2013   

SEATTLE – The Environmental Protect Agency is being urged to do a better job of considering the effects that pesticides have on endangered fish and wildlife.

The EPA is responsible for approving pesticides for use. A National Academy of Sciences expert panel released a report this week that says the agency hasn't been working closely enough with fish and wildlife agencies before making its decisions.

Steve Mashuda, an attorney with the environmental advocacy group Earthjustice, testified before the panel. He says the report could help resolve a longstanding concern in the Northwest.

"We have more than 10 years since the agencies were first directed to consult with one another, and we still don't have necessary protections on the ground for salmon and steelhead in the Pacific Northwest," says Mashuda. "We hope that this report will help move EPA to implementing those protections."

He adds farm chemicals aren't the only concerns; that pesticides used on golf courses and residential lawns often end up in the air and water, affecting the fish and animals in an area.

The report says the EPA analyzes pesticides in terms of what would be a lethal dose for an endangered fish or animal – when other precautions should also be taken.

Mashuda explains these chemicals at different doses can have serious consequences – affecting growth and reproduction, killing a species' food source or habitat, and more.

"This report says that those what are called 'sub-lethal' or indirect effects need to be accounted for earlier in the process,” he says. “And EPA really needs to cast a wide net in order to look at the full range of effects."

The report says a lack of coordination between agencies has hampered the risk assessment process, but that it is possible to improve it with better communication. It says other agencies, such as the National Marine Fisheries Service, should be consulted if an EPA decision would affect a listed or endangered species.



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