New Zealand EPA seeking information on some organophosphates

The New Zealand Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) is seeking information to inform a potential reassessment of substances containing organophosphates and carbamates (OPCs) used as active ingredients in veterinary medicines or pesticides. The submissions will be closed on 11 March 2016.

This call for information relates to approved substances containing bendiocarb, chlorpyrifos, chlorvenfinphos, coumaphos, fenitrothion, maldison, methomyl, pirimiphos methyl, propetamphos, propoxur, temephos or tetrachlorvinphos as the active ingredient.

Reassessments of hazardous substances are undertaken when there is new information available on a substance, since its original approval for import and manufacture in New Zealand,  indicating that the risks to human health and the environment may not be adequately managed by existing controls.

This set of substances was not included in the EPA’s previous OPC reassessments, which were completed in June 2013 (OPC plant protection insecticides), September 2015 (dichlorvos-containing substances) and January 2016 (carbaryl, chlorpyrifos and diazinon substances used for purposes other than plant protection).

The EPA is calling for information on these OPC containing substances, most of which are used as veterinary medicines or for non-plant protection uses (in and around buildings, on hard surfaces, and in industrial situations) such as killing pest insects. Two of the substances the EPA may reassess are used for plant protection purposes such as killing pest insects that impact plant health and crop yield, one containing chlorpyrifos and one containing maldison.