Kevin Bradley, “A Final Report on Dicamba-injured Soybean Acres,” University of Missouri, Integrated Pest and Crop Management, October 30, 2017.
Final compilation of state by state dicamba damage complaints reveals:
See the FULL TEXT link for maps.
Eric Lipton, “Crops in 25 States Damaged by Unintended Drift of Weed Killer,” The New York Times, November 1, 2017.
SUMMARY:
“Dicamba has damaged more than 3.6 million acres of soybean crops, or about 4 percent of all soybeans planted in the United States this year.” Reuben Baris, acting chief of the herbicide branch at the EPA, calls the damage “unacceptable” and suggests that the actual number of drift incidents could be up to 5 times greater than he over 2,700 reports due to a large number of incidents going unreported. Impacts to yields are still unknown, according to the EPA. The initial approval of dicamba for over the top use expires after only 2 years. This article states that EPA officials made it clear that re-approval is in jeopardy if the companies can’t find ways to mitigate damage. FULL TEXT
Tom Polansek, “Monsanto, BASF weed killers strain U.S. states with damage complaints,” Reuters, November 1, 2017.
SUMMARY:
Reports on the latest on the 2017 dicamba damage crisis. Major soybean states such as Arkansas, Missouri, and Illinois received roughly 4 years’ worth of complaints about damaged crops. A total of 2,708 damage investigations have been initiated as of October 15th. In Illinois, where they received 421 complaints, the most since 1989, they expect investigations to continue through next year. Investigations will determine if applicators followed lengthy label instructions (up to 4,550 words). Monsanto believes this off-label application is the issue and plans to change usage instructions before the next crop season. The article points out the expense to state ag agencies to cover this surge in complaints and associated staff demands. Some states are putting off other inspections to manage dicamba complaints, and budgets are strained. The EPA has offered 35 states extra grants to help fund dicamba damage investigations, and is helping states by conducting states for low-levels of dicamba. FULL TEXT
Michael Biesecker, “EPA, herbicide makers agree to new limits for use of dicamba,” Associated Press, October 13, 2017.
SUMMARY:
The EPA announced its deal with Monsanto, BASF and DuPont to allow dicamba use in 2018 with “tangible changes” that will be implemented in the upcoming growing season. Dicamba will be labeled “restricted use” and applicators will be required to get additional training and certifications, and new rules will be implemented related to time of day of application and no spraying when wings are over 10 mph. The EPA worked closely with the three companies and Monsanto praised the new label restrictions, saying they are “confident the required training and record keeping can address the main causes of off-target movement.” The EPA praises the “cooperative federalism” that brought about this agreement. FULL TEXT
Dan Charles, “A Wayward Weedkiller Divides Farm Communities, Harms Wildlife,” NPR, October 7, 2017.
SUMMARY:
This NPR radio story focuses on the farmer to farmer conflicts engendered by the dicamba drift crisis. Some farmers are eager for the new technology to address herbicide-resistant glyphosate, while others are devastated by drift damage. David Wildly, an Arkansas soybean farmer says “It’s something that is so heartbreaking to me. I see farmers taking sides, and enemies being made.” Farmers who support dicamba-resistant technology hope everyone will soon be using them so neighbors can’t be harmed. The story then raises the issue of damage to native vegetation that pollinators rely on. Richard Coy, a beekeeper with 13,000 hives in some of the most affected states, has seen damage to vegetation impacting blooming. According to Coy, honey production across the region is down about one-third on average. FULL TEXT
Johnathan Hettinger, “Complaints surge about weed killer dicamba’s damage to oak trees,” October 9, 2017, Midwest Center for Investigative Reporting.
SUMMARY:
Dicamba drift is being blamed for damage to oak trees in Iowa, Illinois, and Tennessee. More than 1,000 complaints were filed in Iowa, and in Tennessee the oak trees at the state’s largest natural lake were damaged. Monsanto declined to comment, and a BASK spokesperson encourages growers who see damage to contact them but states that they “don’t believe volatility is a driving factor based on past research and experience.” The article reports that internal Monsanto emails obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request, show the company is trying to shift the blame for oak tree damage to other pesticides. FULL TEXT
American Soybean Association, ” ASA Steps up Urgency in Search for Answers on Dicamba Damage,” ASA News Release, September 25, 2017.
SUMMARY:
This American Soybean Association (ASA) news release addresses dicamba drift damage, now an issue in 21 of the 30 soybean producing states, and reiterates their support of new formulations since “farmers need and want new technologies to help fight resistant weeds” but call out the “need to ensure that these products can be used by farmers…safely.” Ron Moore, ASA president and farmer in dicamba-drift affected Illinois is extensively quoted and cites the ASA’s support for independent research at university ag departments in the affected states, and calls for “additional education, applications restrictions, or other actions” to address root causes of the drift problem. While the problem is mainly stemming from soybeans, Moore recognizes the “good neighbor aspect…ASA has a duty to ensure that we are successfully coexisting with other crops.” FULL TEXT
Greg Horstmeier, ” Dicamba: Arkansas Plant Board Unanimously Sets Mid-April Limit,” AgFax, September 22, 2017.
SUMMARY:
The Arkansas State Plant Board reached a unanimous decision to ban dicamba use in the state from August 16 – October 31, 2018 in an attempt to mitigate damage from drift. This would allow spring and fall burndown and pre-emergence application, but not the over the top spraying on growing crops that the new formulation and dicamba resistant seeds are engineered for. Plus, the board passed a resolution commending the Arkansas weed scientists whose scientific integrity was questioned by Monsanto in their bid to persuade the board to reject the proposed ban. The story includes key new information about volatility research that was presented to the board as part of the hearing process. Herbicide industry reps continued to downplay volatility and point fingers at operator error, while independent weed scientists reported that their findings showed that while volatility was lower immediately after spraying, volatilization continued 36 to 72 hours after application, meaning that “over time the amount of volatility between old and new formulations was not statistically different.” The board also rejected Monsanto’s argument that drift damage appears to not have caused yield loss, and is therefore not important to address. Board members felt this is “beyond the point when you are talking about pesticide stewardship” and bristled at Monsanto’s characterization of the proposed ban as “arbitrary and capricious.” FULL TEXT
Tom Polansek, “EPA to allow use of dicamba next year, but with safeguards,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, September 19, 2017.
SUMMARY:
This story reports on the EPA’s decision to allow dicamba use in 2018, although with yet to be determined additional rules to mitigate damages. The acting chief of the herbicide branch Reuben Baris is quoted that “ensuring the technology is available” is the top priority, but that the agency wants to ensure that it is “used responsibly.” This echoes Monsanto’s argument that the fault lies with applicators and not their product. While a cutoff date similar to the one proposed in Arkansas (April 15) is one of the options considered, it is considered unlikely as it would not achieve EPA’s goal of “maintaining dicamba’s usefulness.” FULL TEXT
Carson Thurman, Preston Lee, Mary Margaret Gay, and John McCants, “Part Two: Dicamba Drift Issues Ensnaring Farmer,” Growing Georgia, August 15, 2017.
SUMMARY:
Summarizes dicamba drift lawsuits thus far. FULL TEXT