It’s easy to get lost in the liturgy of information about EPA’s Endangered Species Act (ESA) compliance steps, especially in the new EPA final Herbicide Strategy which was released in August 2024. The final strategy sounds far away, but farms in the Mississippi Delta could already be finding commonly used products with new label requirements on the shelf – like Gluphosinate-P, one of the first labels to feature new mitigation strategies mandated in the final Herbicide Strategy.

What should farmers know

EPA released its draft Herbicide Strategy for producer comment in 2023 and its final version in August 2024. While the Strategy is not immediate, it is already appearing on newly approved labels of common products and farmers should be aware of coming changes.

“Basically, the strategies are designed to limit the off target or off-site movement of pesticides and herbicides,” said Andy Whittington, Mississippi Farm Bureau Federation environmental coordinator. “There are a few things that will change. Mainly it is going to be more tracking and documenting what farmers are already doing, because a lot of conservation has already been put on the ground by producers.”

Mitigation strategies are tailored to the herbicide product, location of use and endangered species potential, so it is important to check labels, as well as EPA’s Bulletins! Live Two (https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species/bulletins-live-two-view-bulletins) website to ensure full compliance.

Related:EPA admin defends final herbicide strategy, agency

“The label is the law,” Whittington said. “It is going to be important to make sure that you are following the label to meet all your requirements.”

Why label changes

In short, EPA is changing label requirements for compliance.

“This is all in response to lawsuits filed against EPA for not following the Endangered Species Act, specifically section 7 of the Endangered Species Act, which requires all federal agencies to consult with the services, which is Fish and Wildlife Services and the National Marine Fishery Service for any federal action to ensure that they are not jeopardizing any of the endangered or threatened species or their habitat,” Whittington said.

EPA’s Herbicide and Insecticide Strategies are being used as a bridge between where labels are now and the required consultations with the services, which experts estimate it could take until the 2040s just on the products that EPA has been sued on to complete.

“As you can imagine, there are tens of thousands of active ingredients and over 1,700 endangered species nationwide, it’s just a lot of work,” Whittington said.

Related:EPA, ESA and PULAs: What to know

Timing

Final Herbicide Strategy changes will be made as new product labels are released from EPA.

“The way this will work will be unlike a normal rule that goes into effect right away,” Whittington said. “This will not automatically go into place. You will start to see it on new pesticide labels as they roll out and on other products as they go through the registration review process.”

To see the Herbicide Strategy requirements for newly released Gluphosinate-P, refer to EPA’s explanation here. (https://www.epa.gov/pesticides/epa-registers-new-herbicide-active-ingredient-glufosinate-p)

Mitigations

Many of the on-label and menu-based mitigations are already common practice for farms. For example, not applying during rainfall and maintaining a downwind buffer.

Fields with runoff or erosion mitigation measures like a tailwater return system already in place have reduced requirements.

“Basically, what you'll see is a requirement for runoff and erosion mitigation points on a new pesticide label,” Whittington said. “The producer will then go to the EPA mitigation menu website (https://www.epa.gov/pesticides/mitigation-menu), and you look at the different mitigations that are on there, see which ones they have in place, and add up the points. Then they will know if they need additional mitigation points.”

Mitigations will vary by field, by region and by the herbicide or pesticide being applied. It’s important to check the mitigation menu, product label and endangered species bulletins in order to find the right mitigation mix.

PULA

Pesticide use limitation areas are almost exclusively referred to as PULAs when describing regions where endangered species are particularly at risk.

“Where EPA has identified particularly vulnerable species they will issue bulletins specific to those areas, and those areas will be called pesticide use limitation areas or PULAs,” Whittington said. “There's a website for the producer to check (https://www.epa.gov/endangered-species/bulletins-live-two-view-bulletins and put in the product registration number, the location of the application, and the month that you are going to apply and it will identify where those pesticide use limitation areas are.”

New labels following the Herbicide Strategy guidelines will require farmers to check the Bulletins! Live Two website within six months of an application. There are a few Delta and Mid-South species identified as vulnerable along with 53 other endangered species in Mississippi and throughout the Delta. The bulletin is an important resource to consult. EPA is currently undergoing a process to refine species range maps, and PULAs will be updated shortly thereafter.

“I would expect to see more areas added as we go along,” Whittington said. “We have very few counties that won't have any endangered species identified by the time we get through all of the areas.”

Preperation

Today is a good day to prepare for changes due to Herbicide Strategy label changes. Crop consultants and Extension personnel are going to be good resources for navigating new requirements as they roll out, Whittington said.

With changes already on some herbicide labels, learning mitigation strategies and personal land requirements will help keep farmers from being surprised by changes in the heat of the growing season.

Whittington said it’s a good practice to begin checking the Bulletins! Live Two website now and documenting the date and time of the site visit with a screenshot, to comply with the maximum six-month lead time for spring and summer applications.

For a complete history and detailed breakdown of EPA’s final herbicide strategy, visit (https://nationalaglawcenter.org/epa-publishes-highly-anticipated-final-herbicide-strategy/).

For a verbal breakdown of the rules with Extension professionals for Mississippi, listen to Whittington’s interview with the Mississippi Crop Situation Podcast.