As the SAP noted, the mechanism which causes tumors in the female of that one rat strain is well understood. It no more applies to humans than something that causes tumors in tails. He studied atrazine for over 15 years, much of it while working with Novartis but he returned to academia almost four years ago. If evidence of atrazine's harm to humans is thinner than a rat's whisker, evidence of its benefits is another story. The chemical is the prime weed-killer for an amazing number of crops, over 30.
Environmentalists insist there are alternatives.
Further, considering that atrazine is used in about 80 other countries, this could destroy our agriculture industry's ability to compete internationally. The reduction in U.S. grain output could also threaten people in underdeveloped countries who will starve without our grain. Despite the EPA's efforts, the evidence for atrazine's safety a chemical used for over 40 years has actually been mounting. About six years ago, the EPA called for a special review of atrazine. The response was overwhelming, with over 100 new scientific studies submitted on the safety and benefits of atrazine and its triazine cousins.