Senator Mark Pryor Press Releases

WASHINGTON D.C. – The Senate passed Senator Mark Pryor’s measure to ensure farmers can continue using ammonium nitrate fertilizer while keeping the chemical out of the hands of terrorists. The measure was included as part of the omnibus appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2008, which passed the Senate Tuesday evening and is expected to be signed into law.

Pryor said ammonium nitrate is a highly popular fertilizer used among Arkansas farmers, but it has also been used to create highly explosive bombs, which has prompted calls for tough regulation and oversight of the chemical. To prevent a ban on the substance, Pryor’s measure requires the Department of Homeland Security to enter cooperative agreements with state departments of agriculture to ensure that any person that produces, stores, sells or distributes ammonium nitrate registers their facility and maintains records of sales or distribution of the product. Buyers would be checked against a terrorist screening database. Vendors who fail to comply with security regulations may be fined up to $50,000.

“Our farmers use ammonium nitrate as a major component in fertilizer because it provides a variety of economic, agronomic and environmental benefits. At the same time, terrorists have employed this substance in a number of real and attempted explosions,” Pryor said. “This common-sense measure keeps ammonium nitrate out of the wrong hands without placing an undue burden on our farmers.”

Pryor said past incidents involving ammonium nitrate as a bomb-making material are reason for concern. He cited the 1992 bombing London’s financial district, the 1998 Embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania and the 2006 Mumbai bombing. The substance was also used in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people.

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		December 19, 2007 Press Release Pryor Protects Farmers' Interests, Alleviates Homeland Security Concerns on Ammonium Nitrate WASHINGTON D.C. – The Senate passed Senator Mark Pryor’s measure to ensure farmers can continue using ammonium nitrate fertilizer while keeping the chemical out of the hands of terrorists. The measure was included as part of the omnibus appropriations bill for Fiscal Year 2008, which passed the Senate Tuesday evening and is expected to be signed into law. Pryor said ammonium nitrate is a highly popular fertilizer used among Arkansas farmers, but it has also been used to create highly explosive bombs, which has prompted calls for tough regulation and oversight of the chemical. To prevent a ban on the substance, Pryor’s measure requires the Department of Homeland Security to enter cooperative agreements with state departments of agriculture to ensure that any person that produces, stores, sells or distributes ammonium nitrate registers their facility and maintains records of sales or distribution of the product. Buyers would be checked against a terrorist screening database. Vendors who fail to comply with security regulations may be fined up to $50,000. “Our farmers use ammonium nitrate as a major component in fertilizer because it provides a variety of economic, agronomic and environmental benefits. At the same time, terrorists have employed this substance in a number of real and attempted explosions,” Pryor said. “This common-sense measure keeps ammonium nitrate out of the wrong hands without placing an undue burden on our farmers.” Pryor said past incidents involving ammonium nitrate as a bomb-making material are reason for concern. He cited the 1992 bombing London’s financial district, the 1998 Embassy bombings in Kenya and Tanzania and the 2006 Mumbai bombing. The substance was also used in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that killed 168 people. ###