CALIFORNIA, June 28, 2017 - California is moving forward with plans to list glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto’s Roundup, as a human carcinogen under its Prop 65 program.
The state’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment made the decision Monday to list the chemical, effective July 7, after the state Supreme Court turned down Monsanto’s request for a stay of the listing June 22. Monsanto’s appeal, however, is continuing in the state’s appeals court, and the company said it would “continue to aggressively challenge this improper decision,” which is based on the 2015 finding by the International Agency for Research on Cancer that glyphosate probably causes cancer in humans.
“OEHHA’s decision to list glyphosate is contrary to its own scientific assessment, which determined that glyphosate is not carcinogenic, as well as the conclusions of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the European Chemicals Agency, and every regulatory body in the world that has studied glyphosate,” Monsanto said. “This is not the final step in the process, and it has no bearing on the merits of the case.” Nathan Donley, a senior scientist at the Center for Biological Diversity, however, said the decision “makes (California) the national leader in protecting people from cancer-causing pesticides.” Prop 65 requires that within a year of listing, businesses that make, sell or distribute listed chemicals “provide a warning if their product or activity exposes the public or employees to significant amounts” of the chemical.
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