Erratum: Pesticides: Three EPA Attorneys Quit and Hoist a Warning Flag

Abstract

The article, "Pesticides: Three EPA attorneys quit and hoist a warning flag" (19 March) referred to aldrin and dieldrin and heptachlor and chlordane as "two pairs of compounds found to be potent carcinogens." Most uses of both aldrin/dieldrin and heptachlor/chlordane were in fact ordered suspended by the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency as an "imminent hazard" to human health and the environment. But some readers may take the words "potent carcinogen" to mean that a compound has been determined by federal authorities to be carcinogenic in laboratory animals at relatively low dose levels. No such finding has been made with respect to heptachlor/ chlordane. In the case of these compounds, the administrator overruled the decision of the administrative law judge, who held that to suspend their use as an imminent hazard was not justified. He felt "hesitantly unwilling at this time to find that heptachlor/chlordane are conclusively carcinogens in laboratory animals." The administrator concluded, however, that heptachlor is a carcinogen in both the rat and the mouse. Weighing the risks of continued use of heptachlor/chlordane against the benefits, he decided that most uses should be suspended. His ruling is now under review by the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.-L.J.C..