The House Agriculture Committee’s draft Farm Bill misses the mark on climate policy, food access, and – crucially for our dwindling pollinator population – pesticide protections. For decades, the Farm Bill has contributed to widespread adoption of industrial agriculture, which relies heavily on harmful chemicals that kill pollinators and threaten our health. The latest proposal put forward by the House Agriculture Committee Republican Majority isn’t just missing stronger oversight of pesticide use – it actively dismantles what’s already in place.
Here are four things to know about how the House majority’s Farm Bill would, if passed, undermine our ability to protect communities and ecosystems from dangerous pesticides.
- It would strip local power to restrict pesticide use. Under the Federal Insecticide Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA), the U.S….