Environmental Groups Lose Effort to Stop Dicamba Applications

SAN FRANCISCO, CA – Earlier in the month, the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of the National Family Farm Coalition and vacated the registrations of three dicamba products. The products were approved and registered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for two years, but the court found that EPA violated federal statutes in approving the products for use on cotton and soybean farms. The decision was a blow for farmers who had planted dicamba-tolerant crops and who were planning on applications during the growing season, which is already underway. In response to farmers who had dicamba products in storage, EPA announced a decision to allow the products to be applied, as outlined in the label, until July 31, 2020. A group of environmental organizations filed an emergency request to stop EPA’s decision and to have the court immediately enforce its June 3, 2020 decision. A three-judge panel on Wednesday denied the petition in a one-page order and farmers with dicamba products will be allowed to continue the use of existing dicamba stocks on hand through the end of July.
(SOURCE: U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and National Sorghum Producers)