6 



and abundantly to our crops, our lawns, and our buildings, the EPA possess very 

 little information concerning the amount of pesticides applied; their frequency of 

 use; their routes of exposure; the extent of pesticide migration into the environment; 

 the exposure levels in agricultural workers, lawn care chemical applicators, and the 

 general population; and the extent to which pesticides are misused. In addition, past 

 hearings on food safety have demonstrated that there are significant data gaps re- 

 garding the level of pesticides consumed by Americans, particularly sub-populations 

 that represent a variety of eating habits, including those of children. 



Section 8 of the bill requires EPA to conduct pesticide research that will eliminate 

 those data gaps. It requires the EPA to establish monitoring methodologies for 

 measuring pesticide levels in the environment, to assess the routes of human expo- 

 sure to pesticides, to develop cost-effective methodologies for assessing pesticide resi- 

 dues in food, to determine the extent of pesticide contamination in different environ- 

 mental media, to study the acute and chronic health effects of pesticide exposure, 

 and to assess the long-term effects of pesticides on various ecosystems. 



This research will enable the Agency to conduct state-of-the-art risk assessments 

 regarding the health and environmental effects of pesticides, thereby, ensuring that 

 the environment and the American public will be adequately protected from their 

 potential adverse effects. 



I want to thank Representative George Brown from California and Representative 

 Tim Valentine from North Carolina for testifying before this subcommittee today. 

 These two members of Congress have actively worked to promote the cause of envi- 

 ronmental research in the House and are currently working to secure passage of the 

 Environmental Technology bill. Representative Brown has been a leader in environ- 

 mental matters for many years and was an original sponsor of the first bill that 

 authorized appropriations for environmental research, development, and demonstra- 

 tion programs. Representative Valentine's district in North Carolina contains the 

 area known as "Research Triangle Park," which is home to some of this country's 

 finest public and private environmental research facilities. I commend both of these 

 men for their dedication to the environmental research issue. 



Mr. Chairman, thank you for convening this hearing. I am proud to be a cospon- 

 sor and a coauthor of this bill and I look forward to working with you and our col- 

 leagues in the Senate to help pass this legislation. Enactment of S. 1545 will help 

 EPA develop and implement a scientific, integrated, research agenda that will ulti- 

 mately result in identification of the best methods for reducing the greatest environ- 

 mental risks that threaten our ecosystems and the American people. 



Senator BAUCUS. Chairman Brown, you may begin. 



STATEMENT OF HON. GEORGE E. BROWN, U.S. 

 REPRESENTATIVE FROM THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA 



Mr. Brown. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, first for hav- 

 ing this hearing today and secondly for the combined work you are 

 doing and all the members of this committee in connection with en- 

 vironmental issues, including the issues of new environmental 

 technology in which you have played a leadership role. We hope to 

 match the efforts you have made shortly and pass some legislation 

 in this area. 



I also want to express my gratitude for the kind remarks you 

 have made. As we approach the twilight of our careers — as we are 

 rapidly approaching — we really have to value only the goodwill and 

 respect of our colleagues. I hope that I have earned a little of that 

 before I leave. 



Senator BAUCUS. Most definitely. 



Mr. Brown. I do recall with some fondness — it was about 20 

 years ago that I persuaded the chairman of the House Committee 

 on Science and Astronautics, as it was known at that time, to es- 

 tablish an environmental subcommittee. My motives were entirely 



