Excerpts:

At the start of the first-time Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) section 21 trial June 8, attorneys for EPA and environmentalists each spent much of their opening comments defending the integrity of their expert witnesses in the case, while attempting to undermine the credibility of the other sides’ experts.

The plaintiffs in the case, Food & Water Watch, Inc. et al v. EPA, who are seeking to show that drinking water fluoridation poses an “unreasonable risk” and must be regulated under TSCA, presented four scientists with a long history of researching fluoride’s risks. They criticized EPA’s defense for using the expert testimony of two scientists from Exponent, a scientific consulting firm that historically retains industry clients.

“The three experts EPA has called have never written anything on fluoride,” said plaintiff attorney Michael Connett. By contrast, the plaintiffs’ scientists “were investigating fluoride’s effects on human health long before this trial began,” he said.

In response, Justice Department attorney Brandon Adkins, representing EPA, criticized the four scientists as being biased against fluoride, and touted the Exponent scientists as unbiased.

The experts for the plaintiff “will admit that they developed their anti-fluoridation opinions decades ago, long before they were retained in this case,” Adkins said…

*A subscription is needed to read the full article at https://insideepa.com/tsca-news/tsca-trial-begins-epa-environmentalists-attack-other-sides%E2%80%99-experts

Print PDF