NEW YORK — Levels of the widely used herbicide atrazine have spiked well above the allowable maximum in many public water systems, sometimes for as much as a month at a time, but few water systems have reported those occurrences, an investigation by The New York Times has found. A report on the investigation was published in the August 23 edition of the newspaper.

The report also refers to new research suggesting that even levels of the chemical that comply with the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) maximum limit of 3 parts per billion (ppb) in public drinking water may be associated with birth defects, low birth weight and menstrual problems.

The principal producer of atrazine, Basel, Switzerland-based Syngenta AG, issued an August 24 press release saying that “water systems in the US are safe where atrazine is concerned” and that many studies worldwide have shown that, when used as labeled, atrazine “can and has been used safely.”

In a response to the Times, the EPA told the newspaper that the agency has applied large safety buffers in regulating atrazine. However, the newspaper wrote: “Some high-ranking EPA officials say there are concerns over atrazine, and that it, among other chemicals, is likely to be closely re-examined by the new EPA administrator, Lisa P. Jackson.”

Atrazine is used to kill weeds in fields where corn and other major crops are grown. It is one of the most widely used herbicides in the United States. Use of the chemical was banned in the European Union in 2005, a move that was part of an effort to set a limit for many agricultural chemicals in groundwater, the Peoria (IL) Journal Star reported in an August 22 article that also cited atrazine’s benefits to farmers.

The environmental group Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) has issued a new report on atrazine, saying the chemical is found in many public water systems, especially those in the central United States where corn is a significant crop. The NRDC claims the EPA is “ignoring” atrazine’s presence in those water systems. The organization recommends that individual home water treatment devices that are certified to NSF/ANSI standards for drinking water can help homeowners reduce levels of contaminants in their drinking water.

The Times report included a map showing that the percentage of people exposed to atrazine in drinking water is highest in the states of Nebraska, Kansas, Ohio, Kentucky and Maryland.

To read the full New York Times article, click here.

To read the full Peoria Journal Star article, click here.

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