Environmental Advocates File for Stay Against EPA's Approval of Enlist Duo Herbicide

In October, 2014 EPA approved the registration of Dow Chemical's Enlist Duo, an herbicide combination of Glyphosate and 2,4,-D. See October 16, 2014 post:
http://www.ngnaturally.blogspot.com/2014/10/epa-approves-registration-of-dow.html#links.

The latest lawsuit, filed February 6th in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, requests a stay on EPA's decision. The petitioners claim that EPA violated the Endangered Species Act by failing to contact the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on the impacts of the use of the new herbicide combination on two critically endangered species, the whooping crane and the Indiana bat.

Whooping Crane in Flight (John Noll, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

According to the lawsuit, Although EPA did acknowledge that the herbicide may impact species listed as endangered, and identified specifically the whooping crane and Indiana bat, it did not request a formal or informal review by the Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), but instead relied on its own assessment of risk and determined there would be "'no effect' on any listed species or designated critical habitat." EPA's determination did not follow the strict standard required by the Endangered Species Act to consult with the FWS. Since commercial use of Enlist Duo in six states is scheduled to begin this spring, the lawsuit is requesting a stay on EPA's registration pending a determination on whether their approval decision violated Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act.