Ron Arnold’s recent column (“Big Green’s anti-fracking operatic chorus hits false note,” May 9, 2013) is based on a factually incorrect premise, namely that my organization “falsely” claimed that the apple-growth regulator Alar was dangerous to children who ate apples.

The truth is this: Alar was and is considered a carcinogen by scientists, and remains banned in the United States by the Environmental Protection Agency on the basis of numerous scientific studies.