(Seattle, WA, – April 19, 2006) Today the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) settled claims for nearly $64,000 with three companies charged with importing and selling improperly labeled pesticides.
EPA settled its claims with Arch Chemicals, Inc., Janssen Pharmaceutical, Inc. and JR Simplot for violations of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA).
“For the safety of our citizens, all imported pesticides intended for use in the United States must be registered as required by Section 3 of FIFRA before being permitted entry into the U.S,” said Chad Schulze, EPA’s Region 10 FIFRA Enforcement Officer in Seattle. “Imported pesticides must be properly labeled to ensure that when used as directed, the product does not pose an unreasonable risk to human health and the environment.”
According to EPA officials:
Arch Chemical, Inc., of Smyrna, Georgia, imported improperly labeled pesticides into the U.S. through Seattle, Washington and Los Angeles, California, on 13 separate occasions between June 2005 and January 2006. EPA issued a Stop Sale, Use, or Removal Order for these illegal shipments in July of 2005. Arch has agreed to pay a $52,000 penalty to settle EPA’s claims.
In October 2005 EPA found that Janssen Pharmaceutical, Inc., of Titusville, New Jersey, also imported an improperly labeled pesticide into the U.S. through Seattle, Washington, in violation of FIFRA. At that time, EPA issued a Stop Sale, Use, or Removal Order for the illegally imported pesticide. Janssen has agreed to pay a $4,680 penalty to settle EPA’s claims.
JR Simplot of Boise, Idaho, has agreed to pay a $7,280 penalty to settle EPA’s claims that they violated the federal pesticide law by including substantially smaller percentages of active ingredients in two lawn products than what was stated on their labels. EPA’s allegations are based on a March 20, 2003 inspection of a Simplot facility in St. Louis, Missouri and subsequent analysis of collected samples.
