For Immediate Release: Thursday, February 6, 2025
Contacts:
Jonathan Oppenheimer, Government Relations Director, Idaho Conservation League, (208) 345-6933 x 226
Irene Ruiz, Executive Director, Idaho Organization of Resource Councils, (208) 991-4451
Sharalyn Peterson, Staff Scientist, Northwest Center for Alternatives to Pesticides 541-344-5044 x 34
Abby Urbanek, Communications & Marketing Manager, ICL, (208) 345-6933 x 214
Chemical Company immunity proves deeply unpopular as legislative efforts multiply
Over 20 states, including Idaho, see campaigns seeking to undermine legal access and public health
BOISE, ID – Despite significant political and advertising investments from pesticide manufacturers, a poll released today indicates overwhelming opposition to Chemical Company Immunity legislation. Legislation and rules that would provide legal protection to chemical manufacturers have been proposed by the EPA, in the US Congress, in several state legislatures, and are expected in Idaho soon.
The research was conducted in Idaho, Iowa, and Missouri, the three states where a coalition of chemical companies, led by large multinational corporations Bayer and ChemChina, failed to advance legislation during the 2024 legislative sessions.
Poll Findings
An independent survey of 2,678 registered voters was conducted in September 2024 by Embold Research, including 878 from Idaho, finding:
- 90% of Idahoans oppose chemical company immunity;
- 88% of Idahoans are concerned that the Environmental Protection Agency does not conduct its own safety studies to evaluate new pesticides;
- 96% support warning people when lawsuits show products can cause serious health problems;
- 85% of Idahoans are concerned that foreign corporations are trying to limit their access to the courts when chemicals threaten their health.
This year, the coalition of chemical manufacturers and agricultural interests have introduced immunity legislation in eight statehouses, and legislation is expected in Idaho and dozens more states. In Congress, some legislators have included immunity legislation, along with other measures weakening local limits on harmful chemicals, in the Farm Bill, and other must-pass legislation. On January 21, 2025, the EPA announced a comment period on a rule that would limit local rules on pesticides.
“Idaho’s farm workers and rural residents already face significant challenges. It doesn’t make sense for legislators to be giving chemical companies immunity as emerging research suggests many chemicals and pesticides can cause cancer and other diseases. It’s clear that Idahoans can see the threats of these chemicals, and politicians would be wise to do the same,” said Irene Ruiz, Executive Director of the Idaho Organization of Resource Councils.
Several studies have shown links between exposure to certain commonly used pesticides and health ailments including cancer, Parkinson’s disease, harm to brain development, and other negative effects.
Many other countries ban the use of certain pesticides approved by the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA has been criticized for its unwillingness to ban pesticides, even after scientists have provided credible evidence linking pesticides to serious health concerns.
Settlements and guilty verdicts against German pharmaceutical giant Bayer alone have exceeded $13+ billion, and other individual and class action lawsuits are pending against other large multinational pesticide manufacturers. Another corporation, Chinese state-owned Syngenta (owned by ChemChina), has faced increased scrutiny over Paraquat, a pesticide linked to Parkinson’s disease. In January 2025, the US Department of Defense listed the pesticide manufacturer (China National Chemical Corporation/ChemChina) as a Chinese military-owned company. Paraquat is banned in nearly 70 countries, including China.
“Proving health effects and damages in court is already an extremely high bar and requires substantial evidence to demonstrate a link between pesticide exposure and human health. The Idaho Legislature and Congress should be focused on protecting the ability of Idahoans and Americans to hold chemical companies accountable, not handing out “get out of jail free cards” to multinational chemical corporations,” said Jonathan Oppenheimer, Government Relations Director with the Idaho Conservation League.
Local research in Idaho has shown elevated levels of pesticides in pregnant women who live close to agricultural fields. Another Idaho study found elevated cancer occurrence correlated to pesticide exposure. As a result, farmworkers, landscapers, and rural residents face significant threats.
“Idahoans are waking up to the reality that corporate interests have captured our regulatory agencies, putting profits over people. Chemical companies want immunity because they know their products can cause harm—and they don’t want to be held accountable. If our elected officials believe in health freedom and the right to protect our families, we must fight back against this corporate overreach and demand real transparency, real accountability, and real justice,” said Christina Stucker-Gassi, Shared Leadership and Campaigns Analyst for the Northwest Center for Alternatives to Pesticides.
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ICL’s mission is to create a conservation community and pragmatic, enduring solutions that protect and restore the air you breathe, the water you drink, and the land and wildlife you love.
The Idaho Organization of Resource Councils works to bring people together to build grassroots power through community organizing, leadership development and civic engagement, and take action to promote and protect health, safety, dignity and justice for frontline communities, including farm workers, and directly impacted communities.