COMMONLY USED PESTICIDES EXPLAINED: 1,3-DICHLOROPROPENE
Dichloropropene is an abundant pesticide used on crops across the United States to control pests. 1,3-Dichloropropene, is sold under diverse trade names, it is an organochlorine compound. It is colorless liquid with a sweet smell. It dissolves in water and evaporates easily. It is used mainly in farming as a pesticide, specifically as a preplant fumigant and nematicide. It is widely used in the US and other countries, but is in the process of being phased out in the European Union. From peanuts to potatoes, dichloropropene is used as a fumigant which both deteriorates in the soil and disperses into the air before seeds can be planted. Recently, dichloropropene has been featured in the news regarding the EPA’s updated risk assessment. Read more to learn about this commonly used pesticide.
Evidence for the carcinogenicity of 1,3-dichloropropene in humans is inadequate, but results from several cancer bioassays provide adequate evidence of carcinogenicity in animals. In the US, the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) has determined that 1,3-dichloropropene may reasonably be anticipated to be a carcinogen. The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) has determined that 1,3-dichloropropene is possibly carcinogenic to humans. The EPA has classified 1,3-dichloropropene as a probable human carcinogen.
What is 1,3-Dichloropropene used for?
1,3-Dichloropropene is used in agriculture as a pesticide. In fact, dichloropropene is one of California’s most-used non-organic pesticides when compared to others in pounds applied and the eighth most-used pesticide in the US per year, with 20-25 million pounds applied annually.
Specifically, dichloropropene which is a liquid but is used as a soil fumigant in its gaseous (volatilized) form. Soil fumigants are pesticide formulations that are incorporated into soil as gases. Fumigant gas molecules move through the pores of the soil and kill pests. Once the pesticide decomposes in the soil or diffuses into the atmosphere, seeds can be planted. Dichloropropene is a soil fumigant that can control pests through its nematicidal, fungicidal, insecticidal, and herbicidal properties, meaning it can kill nematodes, fungus, insects, and weeds. Therefore, dichloropropene is used on a variety of crops to improve yields.
What Common Foods are Grown Using 1,3-Dichloropropene?
Dichloropropene is a widely used pesticide because of its ability to be used on various popular agricultural crops. These crops include deciduous fruit and nuts, field crops like grains, bush and vine planting sites, citrus fruit, strawberries, sugar beets, potatoes, vegetables, tobacco, cotton, flowers, and ornamental trees. Dichloropropene is actually the main pesticide used for tobacco, potatoes, sugar beets, cotton, peanuts, sweet potatoes, onions and carrots which are crops that have such high pest pressure, that not applying pesticides is not possible for sufficient yields.
1,3-Dichloropropene in the News
Recently, Dichloropropene has been featured in the media due to shifting regulations from the EPA and backlash from attorneys general and environmental groups. The EPA recently submitted a new risk assessment for dichloropropene that has downgraded its cancer risk from “likely to be a carcinogen” to “suggestive evidence of carcinogenic potential”. Eight attorneys general have openly criticized the EPA for minimizing dicholoropropene’s cancer risk as farm workers and certain communities continue to be exposed disproportionately to the fumigant. Meanwhile, the 2019 Agricultural Fumigants Market size report was released, and experts predict the fumigant market to grow. The attorneys general have asked the EPA to revise the human health risk assessment and the EPA has responded by saying it would review the comments. No matter the risks of dichloropropene, it does not change the current agricultural circumstances that require it to grow several crops in the US.
cis-1,3-Dichloropropene
Part No: N-11476 - 100MG
CAS: 10061-01-5
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