The counties with the highest use of pesticides per square mile are all located in Missouri's Bootheel. Many of these counties have some of the state's highest cancer rates and their health care options are dwindling.
Though HHS Secretary Kennedy litigated pesticide cases as an environmental lawyer, he pledges now not to target the chemical so widely used in US agriculture.
The 2009 Endangerment Finding declares six greenhouse gases ‘threaten the public health and welfare of current and future generations.’ Yet EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin says, ‘We are driving a dagger through the heart of climate-change religion and ushering in America’s Golden Age.’
Iowa’s farmlands are hotbeds for greenhouse gases, with nitrous oxide accounting for 59% of agricultural emissions in 2022.
These emissions are primarily driven by nitrogen fertilizer applications and animal
Trump’s rapid dismantling of federal agencies is disrupting key government oversight functions. Critics say cuts at the EPA will stall investigations into industrial ag pollution in marginalized communities.
