POPs are global contaminants that threaten wildlife, ecosystems, and human health in the United States and around the world. They have been associated with a variety of adverse health effects, including cancers, birth defects, reproductive disorders, and learning and behavioral impairments. Despite more than two decades of progress toward controlling POPs pollution here at home, these chemicals continue to contaminate the U.S., in many cases traveling thousands of miles from other countries to America's shores. Today, POPs are found in our waterways, soils, and food. All of the Great Lakes and many of the nation's fisheries are under human health advisories due to POPs contamination in fish.
POPS accumulate in the bodies of people, fish, and wildlife in every region of the country.
Those most at risk are children, fetal life, women of childbearing age, and communities who rely on local fish and wildlife as a major part of their diet. The treaty will go a long way toward alleviating POPs pollution here and around the world. In a related move last week, the Sierra Club urged President Bush to resist pressure from industry groups and end delays on assessing the cancer risk of dioxin, one of the POPs covered by the Stockholm Convention. The Sierra Club called on President Bush to stand up to these industries, which contributed heavily to his campaign, and release this decade-long study on the threats of dioxin. For the latest information on the POPs treaty and the ratification process, please visit our POPs Treaty page.