Red Light? Or Green?

Talk about double messages. Two federal courts have come out with decisions that could 1) limit and 2) increase the number of toxic chemicals to which Americans are exposed. The first concerns four pesticides -- used on crops including tomatoes, fruits and grains -- that cause cancer in laboratory animals. When these crops are processed into jellies, say, or catsup, the pesticides become more concentrated than they are in the field. Even then, the Environmental Protection Agency says, the risk of cancer is 1 in a million at most, and the chemicals should stay on the market.

But a 1958 law says any risk at all is unacceptable, and a San Francisco court ruled that the epa must ban the four; 31 others will probably be affected too, and 30 more could be. That adds up to 20% of all pesticides used on crops. The EPA is deciding whether to appeal -- and the pesticide industry is holding its breath.

The other ruling involves worker safety: in 1989 the Occupational Safety and Health Administration limited workplace exposure to more than 400 toxic substances. But OSHA didn't make a separate case for each, as the law requires. Though that would have taken decades, an Atlanta court said the limits are invalid. Workers shouldn't panic: it's unlikely that companies that have spent millions to comply with osha's standards will now spend even more to have safeguards removed.