Database Overview

The Turf Pesticides and Cancer Risk Database facilitates access to cancer risk information on 114 active ingredients found in 3233 pesticide products registered for use on turf and lawn in New York State (NYS). Risk management decision documents, or 'RED' documents, are available for many, but not all, of these chemicals and include further information on estimated health risks under various exposure scenarios.

Active Ingredient Cancer Risk Information

Cancer risk information for each active ingredient has been compiled from the USEPA list of Chemicals Evaluated for Carcinogenic Potential (2008). Only active ingredients that occur in turf pesticide products registered for use in NYS and that have been evaluated for cancer risk by USEPA are currently included in the database.

While the USEPA has concluded that some of the active ingredients in the database are associated with a cancer risk, many of the active ingredients show no evidence of cancer risk.

Overview of Active Ingredients and Currently Registered (NYS) Products in the Turf Pesticides and Cancer Risk Database

	Active ingredients	Products
	Number of active ingredients with this cancer risk rating in currently registered products	Number of currently registered turf products in NYS* containing active ingredient with this cancer risk rating
Known human carcinogen	0	0
Likely/Probable human carcinogen	19	252
Possible human carcinogen/ Suggestive evidence	29	585
Not likely/Evidence of non-carcinogenicity	46	412
Not classifiable/Inadequate information	16	243
Multiple descriptors	2	12
*Includes products that are discontinued and scheduled for cancellation in NYS.

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Pesticide Product Information

The database includes information on turf pesticide products that are currently registered for use in New York State as well as products used in the past that are no longer registered. Pesticide product information was compiled from the New York State Product, Ingredient, and Manufacturer System (PIMS) database http://pmep.cce.cornell.edu/pims/.

Search Features

Users can access a variety of information using pull down menus and search fields including:

Active ingredient name (chemical name)
Chemical Abstract Service (CAS) number
USEPA cancer risk category
Product name
USEPA product registration number

For each active ingredient, additional information is provided in the search results including:

Number of products (currently registered in NYS, registered but discontinued, and no longer registered) that include the active ingredient
Links to additional product information

For each turf pesticide product listed for a particular active ingredient, users can link to additional information, including:

Pesticide type (e.g., insecticide, herbicide, etc.)
Formulation (e.g., liquid, powder, etc.)
Registration status and pertinent dates
General or restricted use designation
Toxicity to non-target organisms
Product uses
Precautionary signal words
Approved for use on Long Island (yes or no)

Data Sources and Updates

The USEPA's list of Chemicals Evaluated for Carcinogenic Potential (2008), used in compiling information on the cancer risk of active ingredients included in this database, was last updated by the USEPA in September 2008. BCERF will update the database periodically to reflect information contained in future updates of this USEPA document, which are expected to occur every two years.

The PIMS system is updated weekly to reflect products registered in NYS. Information in the database from PIMS was last updated using December 12, 2008 data. Users are encouraged to access the PIMS database directly for access to the most up-to-date information on turf pesticide products.

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