All pesticides must be either registered or exempted from registration by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) before they can be sold or distributed in the US. As part of the registration process, EPA evaluates a pesticide to ensure that it will not have unreasonable adverse effects on humans, the environment, and non-target species. The legal use of a pesticide is dictated by the instructions on the label that is developed as part of the federal registration process for all pesticide products and serves as an agreement between the EPA and the end user of the product. While the EPA registers pesticides, it is state pesticide regulatory programs that have primacy and ensure that pesticide use is consistent with the product label. State pesticide programs ensure compliance through routine inspections, pesticide use observations, and investigations of possible pesticide misuse. In situations where the use of a pesticide is in a manner inconsistent with the label, a state regulatory program will take appropriate enforcement action. But what about those situations in which the use of the pesticide is legal and yet there are adverse effects to non-target species, for example, pollinators? In this session, we will explore regulatory issues faced by state pesticide programs when the legal use of pesticides and the protection of pollinators are seemingly at odds and the current efforts to provide for both.

Intersect of pesticides and pollinators: Challenges faced by state regulatory programs

246th National Meeting (2013)

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