Endangered Species Act, Pollinator Health Among Key Issues For CropLife America

Recently, CropLife® magazine had the chance to talk with CropLife America about the association’s key objectives and concerns.

CropLife (CL): What are some of the most important regulatory issues that you’re seeing in the crop protection industry right now? What’s top of mind for your member companies?

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CropLife America (CLA): Aspects of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and Clean Water Act (CWA) still pose great regulatory threat to the manufacturers and applicators of crop protection products. Particularly with ESA, we are seeing ongoing overlap and conflict created by two statutes — the Endangered Species Act and the Federal Fungicide, Insecticide, and Rodenticide Act — which could disrupt nationwide agricultural production. We agree with farmers, environmentalists and regulators that the current regulatory system for protecting vulnerable species is broken and in need of repair, and we continue to work to help develop a solution. Crop protection products play an important role in growing more food on less land, and can be part of helping to protect endangered species.

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The Clean Water Rule is another important issue. EPA’s final rule creates onerous, inconsistent standards that will reduce farmers’ ability to produce and will not advance clean water goals. Multiple definitions in the Clean Water Rule conflict with its intent, making it difficult for growers to discern whether their fields contain jurisdictional areas and are subject to National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting requirements. The current solution offered by EPA is not a realistic or appropriate step forward.

Even before the current controversy over the Clean Water Rule, we’ve had CWA NPDES issues specific to pesticides. However, in an exciting step, the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee met on August 5 to mark-up S. 1500, the Sensible Environmental Protection Act. This bill helps serve as an NPDES fix, and committee mark-up is a critical step in helping this piece of legislation move forward in the Senate.

CL: Pollinator health seems to still be in the headlines. How has CLA responded to the Presidential Task Force Report released this spring?  Are there other activities that those in the agriculture industry should be aware of?

CLA: The White House Pollinator Task Force report, released this past May, identified multiple threats to bee health and largely focused on the need to preserve habitat. We were pleased to see that the Task Force took a multi-pronged approach to addressing bee health and engaged a multitude of Federal agencies, state governments and many of us in the private sector.

However, there is still ongoing EPA regulatory activity targeting the responsible use of crop protection products. Newly-proposed restrictions by EPA would prohibit the applications of most insecticides and some herbicides during bloom where bees are known to be present under contract pollinator services. Yet research and field studies have consistently found no unreasonable adverse effects on both wild and managed bee populations when pesticides are applied according to label directions. Rather than seeking intensive nationwide policy changes, we believe that beekeepers and growers can work together to develop solutions that work in their specific areas. CLA will be submitting comments to EPA on these proposed restrictions later this August.

CL: Beyond the federal level, what should people be paying attention to in their own states and counties?

CLA: Around the country, we have seen an increased number of proposed bans on the use of pesticides, often on a county-specific basis. In states such as Oregon and Hawaii, many groups are spreading false information to consumers and are pushing to pass laws that go against federal law. Any ban on an approved pesticide product reduces consumer choice and imposes a hardship on growers, potentially resulting in higher prices at the grocery store, food shortages or the need to buy food grown or sold in other states. CLA members strongly support consumer choice and access to healthy food grown through both organic and conventional methods.

This is an area of increasing importance, not just for the industry as a whole, but for each applicator and grower to get involved. Your voice will matter in council meetings, town halls and at the polling booth.

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