"Fiery Emails Show EPA Turmoil Over Pet Collars Tied To Deaths"

"EPA career scientists raised concerns about pesticide-laced collars linked to pet deaths, but agency managers instructed them to avoid documenting those worries in publicly accessible records, according to internal emails.

Released through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit filed by the Center for Biological Diversity, a trove of internal emails show EPA managers have sought to downplay qualms from agency scientists over the safety of flea collars linked to thousands of animal deaths. In particular, they worried about Seresto collars, approved by EPA nearly a decade ago but connected to nearly 1,700 animal deaths and 75,000 incidents of animal harm.

EPA has been vague in its response to pushback over the product, saying publicly that it is in conversations with Elanco Animal Health Inc. to better understand the product. But internal communications show a very different understanding of the risks posed by the collars."

E.A. Crunden reports for E&E News March 25, 2022.

Source: E&E News, 03/28/2022