Photo: Alamy
EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced this week that his agency, working alongside the Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection, has stopped over 200,000 pounds of illegal pesticides from entering the U.S. through ports of entry this year.
“We are accelerating investigations and enforcement on toxic and poisonous imports, including illegal pesticides and chemical smuggling,” Zeldin said in a statement posted to X.
He added, “This will advance agricultural integrity, safeguard our communities, increase national security, and help Make America Healthy Again.”
According to a press release from the EPA, the Trump administration has bolstered the enforcement scope and investigative capacity of the agency, allowing crackdowns at U.S. ports of entry. Illegal pesticide and chemical smuggling operations have broadly come to a halt under the watchful eye of the EPA and its collaborative agencies, like the CBP and the DHS.
“At the Trump EPA, we’re committed to securing clean air, land, and water for all Americans,” said EPA Assistant Administrator for Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Jeffrey Hall in a statement.“That means vigorously enforcing our nation’s laws and vigilantly policing the products that come across our borders. We’re grateful to have partners at CBP and the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach who share our commitment to ensuring that imported products comply with the law and do not poison our communities.”
Hall met with authorities in Southern California this week at the Long Beach/Los Angeles Seaport to further discuss how to keep these critical points of entry safe and secure, the agency said.
As the EPA works to stop the flow of illegal chemicals into the U.S., MAHA architect and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. praised the agency’s efforts.
“[T]hank you, Administrator Zeldin, for keeping these poisons out of the United States,” Kennedy said on X.
