Poison in Our Water, Politics in Our Science
Traces Of Pesticides Banned Years Ago Are Still In Our Water & Water Monitoring Programs Are On The Chopping Block.
I’m about to tell you something that might make your blood boil. Right now, Washington decision makers are trying to pull the plug on one of the only agencies actually working to protect our water.
The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has released a study tracking 22 pesticides in our groundwater (across the U.S.) that are known to cause human harm. Yes, the USGS has been monitoring pesticide concentrations in groundwater since 1993.
And you know what? For 21 of those chemicals, the contamination levels are finally going down. That should be good news, right? Wrong. Because the real story here isn’t about pesticides getting better. It’s about the current administration trying to destroy the very agency that’s telling us the truth.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., our Health and Human Services (HHS) secretary, has expressed strong concerns about the use of pesticides, labeling many as “extraordinarily toxic” and linking them to serious health issues such as cancer and developmental disorders.
So why is he part of an administration that wants to gut the USGS budget by 38 percent, cutting it from $1.45 billion to $892 million? They’re now calling environmental monitoring “woke.” I’m not making this up.
Back in June, U.S. Senator Martin He, ranking member on the Senate Committee of Energy and Natural Resources sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum, expressing his grave concern surrounding the assault on the USGS.
“The proposed budget cuts are not about ‘efficiency’— they represent a retreat from federal responsibility and a dismantling of the scientific infrastructure that communities, industries, and governments depend on every day,” the letter said. “USGS supports work that directly protects public health, strengthens our economy, and informs disaster preparedness and response.”
If Congress goes along with this—and it looks like they will—the water monitoring program is essentially dead. The scientists? Fired. Decades of expertise, gone.
This is exactly what the pesticide industry wants. Without water testing, there’s no scientific evidence linking their products to disease. No evidence means no lawsuits, no restrictions, no accountability. The 13 million Americans who depend on well water? They’ll be left completely in the dark about any potential contaminants in their water.
The study makes this crystal clear: “Domestic-supply wells are not regulated by state or federal law, and homeowners are responsible for the maintenance and any monitoring of these drinking-water sources.”
A $20 Billion Business
Pesticide manufacturers rake in about $20 billion a year in the U.S. alone. They dump 1 billion pounds of toxic chemicals onto our farms, orchards, and feedlots every single year to help control weeds, insects, and other pests.
These chemicals are killing us—slowly, quietly, in trace amounts that add up with time in our water and air.
It’s why we’ve banned or restricted more than two dozen of these poisons since DDT.
Rachel Carson’s book, Silent Spring, which she called her “poison book,” revealed the damaging effects of chemical pesticides on the environment. She focused mainly on the insecticide DDT, which was routinely sprayed in homes and on crops.
For years, the USGS has been monitoring what’s in our water. They developed the tools; they trained the scientists; they collected the data. This new report looked at 59 groundwater networks from 1993 to 2023, and here’s what they found:
Only one pesticide, DBCP, an insecticide banned way back in 1977, still exceeds safe drinking water levels, and only in California’s Central Valley. Everywhere else, contamination from these legacy pesticides is dropping. That’s progress, and it proves something crucial. When we track these chemicals and ban the dangerous ones, it works.
But these poisons stick around. The study confirms that pesticides are extremely persistent in the environment, with groundwater networks across the country still contaminated by trace levels of pesticides. The highest concentrations are in groundwater in America’s farming regions, particularly the Midwest.
And here’s the kicker: this study didn’t even look at today’s popular pesticides like glyphosate and dicamba.
The USGS researchers stated clearly that their findings “highlight the importance of continued long-term monitoring and assessment of groundwater pesticides to identify locations and specific compounds that may pose a potential risk to human health.”
They’re Not Even Hiding It Anymore
Look at what’s happening right now. The EPA is considering a petition from attorneys general in 11 states to block states from banning glyphosate—you know it as Roundup.
Bayer, the German chemical giant that makes it, has been hit with $14 billion in judgments from 115,000 Americans who say the company never warned them Roundup causes cancer.
So, what’s Bayer doing? Lobbying Congress to pass laws shielding them from future lawsuits. North Dakota and Georgia already caved and gave them immunity.
And get this: HHS released a report in May 2025 saying pesticides are a human health risk. Then in September, the same department put out another study that stripped out that language and promised the EPA would speed up pesticide approvals and “partner” with manufacturers to “educate” the public about their “robust review” process.
Translation: propaganda.
Oh, and the administration appointed Kyle Kunkler—a top chemical industry lobbyist who has spent years keeping the dangerous pesticide dicamba on the market—as the EPA’s chief pesticide regulator. You can’t make this stuff up.
“The appointment of Kyle Kunkler sends a loud, clear message: Industry influence is back in charge at the EPA,” Environmental Working Group president Ken Cook said in a statement. “It’s a stunning reversal of the campaign promises Trump and RFK, Jr., made to their MAHA followers—that they’d stand up to chemical giants and protect children from dangerous pesticides.”
A Legacy We Can’t Escape
Here’s what’s truly haunting. DBCP was banned for agricultural use in 1977, yet 45 years later, concentrations are still greater than the maximum contaminant level.
The study found that the percentage of samples exceeding the safety benchmark dropped from 50 percent to 15 percent between 1993 and 2023, but that still means contamination exists nearly half a century after we stopped using the stuff.
And they want to stop tracking it.
This Is War on Our Health
I’m not naive enough to think that pesticides are going away. But using them safely requires monitoring. We need real oversight (and enforcement) by agencies that aren’t in bed with the manufacturers.
What we’re seeing now is a calculated dismantling of the safeguards that took us decades to build. They’re destroying the evidence while poisoning us, and they’re doing it right out in the open.
These chemicals are already in our bodies.
About 81 percent of the U.S. population has had exposure to glyphosate, according to a 2022 study, “Exposure to glyphosate in the United States: Data from the 2013–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.” It’s the largest evaluation of glyphosate exposure of its kind and the first to provide information on the levels of glyphosate in urine by race/ethnicity and sex for adults and children 6 years and older.
You can be exposed to glyphosate through diet, skin contact, and breathing in particles from the air. Fruits, vegetables, and cereals are all possible sources of glyphosate.
Big Ag and the pesticide makers cheer while the rest of us are supposed to stay quiet. Well, I’m not staying quiet. And neither should you.
This is about more than pesticides. It’s about whether we’re going to let corporations sacrifice our health and our children’s future for their profit margins. It’s about whether our government works for us or for them.
We fought too hard to get where we are. We’re not going back.
What You Can Do Right Now
This information feels grim, but it doesn’t mean we’re powerless. While we’re fighting to save the agencies that protect us, there are things you can do today to protect your family.
If You’re on Well Water, You Need to Know
Children and pregnant women are particularly vulnerable to pesticide exposure. If you’re one of the 13 million Americans relying on a private well, you’re on your own—no one is testing that water for you. Get it tested. Find a certified lab and test for pesticides, nitrates, and other contaminants. It’ll cost you money that you shouldn’t have to spend, but it could save your life.
Know What’s In Your Food
Food is one of your biggest source of pesticide exposure. Here’s the truth: organic farming prohibits the use of many synthetic pesticides, relying instead on natural pest control methods. Yes, organic costs more. Yes, that’s infuriating. But if you can afford it, do it. If you can’t afford all organic, prioritize the produce that matters most—the stuff you eat every day, the stuff with thin skins.
And wash everything. Simply holding fruits and vegetables under running water for at least 30 seconds can help remove surface dirt and pesticide residue. It won’t get everything, but it’s something.
Take Back Your Yard
Stop poisoning your own property. You can use physical barriers like netting, introduce beneficial insects like ladybugs, or apply homemade remedies made from soap, water, and garlic. Your lawn doesn’t need to be a chemical dumping ground. Those dandelions aren’t going to kill you, but the pesticides you’re spraying on them might.
How Do I Tell My Neighbor To Stop Using Roundup?
In the poem “Mending Wall,” Robert Frost repeats the line, “good fences make good neighbors.” Of course, when it comes to herbicide or pesticide use, a fence is usually not enough to protect your yard from what your neighbor decides to spray.
If you’ve got old pesticides sitting in your garage, get rid of them properly. Never pour pesticides down the drain or into the toilet. And please, keep them away from your kids and pets.
The Real Solution
But here’s the thing. Personal actions are important, but they aren’t enough.
We shouldn’t have to be our own EPA. We shouldn’t have to become amateur chemists just to figure out if our water is safe to drink. We shouldn’t have to spend extra money on organic food because corporations are allowed to spray poison on everything else.
The real solution lies in holding these companies accountable and demanding that our government does its damn job. That means protecting agencies like the USGS. That means enforcing regulations. That means making polluters pay.
Keep the conversation going. What do you think about losing scientists and water monitoring programs aimed at protecting public health?