EPA Reviewing Nanosilver Pesticides

EPA wants to reclassify a handful of pesticides already on the market as containing nanosilver. Most of the manufacturers of these products registered them with EPA without disclosing that they contain nanosilver, even though they have silver particles with dimensions between 1 and 100 nm. To address the potential health and safety effects of silver in the products, the companies had submitted data for conventional silver or silver chloride. The agency now proposes requiring companies to supply additional data about the products so EPA can determine whether nanosilver’s unique physical and chemical properties alter the health and safety properties of these products, compared with conventional silver products. The agency plans to focus initially on what form and concentration of silver is released from the products. If the agency determines that nanosilver is released, it will then ask companies for data on health and ecological effects, as well as environmental fate. EPA is accepting comments on the proposed process until Aug. 19.