EPA Approves World’s First Nanopesticide

The EPA announced this week that it is granting a “conditional registration” with a four-year trial period to the world’s first nanopesticide–a composite of nanoscale silica and nanosilver, according to Nanotechnology Now. The pesticide, dubbed AGS-20, will be used in textiles as an antimicrobial agent. It’ll undoubtedly keep those garments from smelling, but the long-term consequences are unknown. Environmentalists suspect that nanopesticides can build up in soil, marine life, and water. It’s also possible that nanosilver can trigger problems with bacterial resistance.