EPA Restores Chlorpyrifos Registration After 8th Circuit Court Ruling

The Environmental Protection Agency has announced it will reverse its 2021 ban on the pesticide chlorpyrifos, following a ruling by the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.  American Farm Bureau attorney Travis Cushman says the group sued EPA after years of legal battles mounted by environmental groups…

The appeals court ruled in November that EPA disregarded its own scientists’ findings that agricultural use of chlorpyrifos was safe.  The insecticide had been used in soybeans, corn, wheat, cotton, and orchard crops until EPA revoked the product’s registration in August 2021.  EPA said at the time that the insecticide had been found to inhibit an enzyme, leading to neurotoxicity, and was also associated with potential neurological effects in children.  California and Hawaii had implemented statewide bans, while chlorpyrifos has been banned in the European Union since 2020.

From NAFB News Service