Archives

November 16, 2023

Eighth Circuit Court Vacates EPA Rule Revoking All Chlorpyrifos Tolerances

On November 2, 2023, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals (Eighth Circuit) issued its decision in Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Ass’n v. Regan, No. 22-1422 (8th Cir. 2023) regarding the use of the pesticide chlorpyrifos on food crops (Decision). The court concluded that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) August 2021 revocation of all food tolerances for chlorpyrifos was arbitrary and capricious, and remanded the matter back to EPA for further review. Chlorpyrifos was...
March 8, 2022

EPA Releases Response Denying Objections to Its Final Rule Revoking All Tolerances for Chlorpyrifos

On February 25, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it has issued a response denying the objections filed against its final rule revoking all chlorpyrifos tolerances (Response). EPA issued the August 18, 2021, final rule in response to the Ninth Circuit Court’s Order directing EPA to issue a final rule in response to Pesticide Action Network North America and Natural Resources Defense Council’s 2007 petition, which requested EPA to revoke all...
August 24, 2021

EPA Announces It Will Take Action to Address Risk from Chlorpyrifos

On August 18, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it will stop the use of the pesticide chlorpyrifos on all food. In the pre-publication of the Federal Register notice released on August 19, 2021, EPA revoked all “tolerances” for chlorpyrifos, which establish an amount of a pesticide that is allowed on food. In addition, EPA states that it will issue a Notice of Intent to Cancel under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and...
December 10, 2020

EPA Issues Proposed Interim Registration Review Decision to Require New Risk Mitigation Measures for Chlorpyrifos

On December 7, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued for comment the Proposed Interim Decision (PID) for chlorpyrifos.  85 Fed. Reg. 78849.  EPA announced it is proposing new risk mitigation measures to address potential human and environmental risks identified in EPA’s September 2020 draft risk assessments.  The PID proposes the following measures: EPA states that the PID presents proposed mitigation with the 10-fold (10x) Food...
February 14, 2020

Corteva Announces It Will Cease Production of Embattled Insecticide Chlorpyrifos

On February 6, 2020, Corteva Agriscience (Corteva), announced it will discontinue all production of the organophosphate (OP) insecticide chlorpyrifos by the end of the year.  Corteva and its corporate predecessor, Dow AgroSciences, have been the principal global manufacturers of chlorpyrifos.  Corteva announced that its decision to stop selling chlorpyrifos was based entirely on financial considerations.  This announcement came on the same day that Corteva had previously agreed it...
January 3, 2020

European Union to Ban Chlorpyrifos after January 31, 2020

On December 6, 2019, the European Union (EU) announced that it will no longer permit sales of chlorpyrifos after January 31, 2020.  The Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed (PAFF Committee) voted in favor of two draft Implementing Regulations that denied the renewal of approvals for chlorpyrifos and chlorpyrifos-methyl.  The European Commission is expected to formally adopt the regulations in January 2020.  At that time, Member States...
August 16, 2019

California DPR Issues Cancellation Notices for Chlorpyrifos, and Establishes a Work Group to Recommend and to Develop Alternatives to Chlorpyrifos

On August 14, 2019, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) issued cancellation notices to thirteen California registrants of pesticide products containing chlorpyrifos, including Dow Agrosciences LLC (now Corteva).  Each of these notices is referred to as an “Accusation,” and each affected registrant has 15 days to request a hearing concerning the proposed cancellation.  DPR’s issuance of these notices followed a final decision by...
August 9, 2019

Parties Who Requested that EPA Revoke All Tolerances and Cancel All Registrations for Chlorpyrifos, and Eight States, File New Petitions Challenging EPA’s 2019 Order Denying that Request, Seek Consolidation with the Existing Chlorpyrifos Case, and Oppose a Motion by EPA to Dismiss the Existing Case as Moot

On August 7, 2019, the League of United Latin American Citizens, Pesticide Action Network North America, Natural Resources Defense Council, and other petitioners (Petitioners) filed a new petition in the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals seeking judicial review of United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) orders denying their request that EPA revoke all tolerances and cancel all registrations for chlorpyrifos.  On August 8, 2019, New York, California, Hawaii, Maryland, Vermont,...
July 19, 2019

EPA Issues Final Order Denying Objections to EPA’s March 2017 Order Denying PANNA’s and NRDC’s 2007 Petition to Revoke All Tolerances and Cancel All Registrations for Chlorpyrifos

On July 18, 2019, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a pre-publication version of a Federal Register notice announcing a final order denying the Pesticide Action Network North America’s (PANNA) and the Natural Resources Defense Council’s (NRDC) 2007 Petition requesting that EPA revoke all tolerances and cancel all registrations for chlorpyrifos (Order).  This Order constitutes final Agency action denying all of the Petitioners’ objections to EPA’s...
June 11, 2019

Health Canada Proposes Cancellation of All Uses of Chlorpyrifos

On May 31, 2019, Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) issued its Proposed Re-evaluation Decision PRVD2019-05, Chlorpyrifos and Its Associated End-use Products: Updated Environmental Risk Assessment (Updated Environmental Risk Assessment).  PMRA states that this re-evaluation “considers data and information from pesticide manufacturers, published scientific reports, and other regulatory agencies” and that “Health Canada applies internationally accepted...