The Environmental Protection Agency announced Wednesday a ban on the use of chlorpyrifos, a pesticide that has been linked to neurological damage in children, on food and feed crops.

The new rule, which will take effect in six months, follows an order in April by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals that directed the EPA to halt the agricultural use of the chemical unless it could demonstrate its safety," Coral Davenport reports for The New York Times. "Labor and environmental advocacy groups estimate that the decision will eliminate more than 90 percent of chlorpyrifos use in the country."

Chlorpyrifos has been widely used since 1965, but increasing safety concerns and state-level bans have made it much less so in recent years and its leading manufacturer, Corteva, stopped manufacturing it last year. Advocates for farmworkers, health, and the environment have long called for a ban after studies linked exposure to the pesticide with developmental problems in children such as low birth weight, reduced intelligence, and more.

Read the full article about banning chlorpyrifos by Heather Chapman at The Rural Blog.