In fact, the EPA requires more chemical toxicity testing on animals than any other federal agency. Toxic contaminants such as arsenic and lead can pose a serious health risk to humans, particularly infants and children. However, the EPA is still not sure whether it is worth spending the money to clean up these contaminants on the sites of former mines, mills, and smelter waste facilities. The research is being performed under the direction of University of Missouri toxicologist Stan Casteel and involves dissolving toxins in drinking water or mixing them with food, then feeding them to immature pigs.
Researchers then measure the levels of lead and arsenic in the pigs' blood or urine.
These systems evaluate the degree to which metal toxins are absorbed through a simulated gastrointestinal tract. The acidity is then reduced and incubation continues for a period intended to mimic the time that would be spent in the small intestine. Enzymes and organic acids are also added to simulate gastric and small-intestinal fluids. The fraction of lead, arsenic, or other metals that dissolves during the stomach and small-intestinal phases represents the fraction that is available for absorption and which is therefore capable of causing toxicity. Please contact EPA head Christine Todd Whitman and ask her to discontinue the EPA's funding of these pig toxicity studies and to replace them with the non-animal method.