The Deal With Dicamba: Examining the Ninth Circuit’s Decision and Its Potential Impacts

Topic:

Dicamba is an extremely effective herbicide that has a history of being used to combat difficult-to-control weeds. Until recently, dicamba has primarily been used in the late winter and early spring as a pre-emergent herbicide because it has a problem with volatility that causes it become airborne and drift off-target during application. However, in 2016 Monsanto Company successfully registered a new formulation dicamba herbicide that was allegedly less volatile with the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”). The new formulation, known as XtendiMax, was registered for over-the-top use, meaning it could be sprayed directly over crops after planting. Following the registration, four environmental groups, lead by the National Family Farm Coalition, filed suit against EPA alleging that the registration of XtendiMax violated the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act and the Endangered Species Act.

On June 3, 2020, The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit issued its opinion in National Family Farm Coalition v. EPA vacating the registrations of XtendiMax, FeXapan, and Engenia, three dicamba herbicides registered for over-the-top use. According to the court, the registrations violated FIFRA. Five days later, on June 8, EPA issued a Cancellation Order for all three herbicides. The Order requires that sale and distribution of the dicamba herbicides to cease, but permits use according to the label of existing stock of the herbicides. The plaintiffs have sought to have EPA’s Cancellation Order overturned by the court.

These actions, which come in the middle of the 2020 growing season, have raised several questions about the impacts of the court’s decision and what will happen going forward. This webinar will provide an overview of the case history, the Ninth Circuit’s decision, EPA’s Cancellation Order, the actions that the parties have taken since, and what the outcome of these actions could mean for dicamba use.

 

Time and Date:

Wednesday, June 24th, 2020

12:00 – 1:00 (EDT)

Participation:

This webinar is offered free of charge and is limited to the first 100 registrants. It is recommended that you test your computer for software compatibility prior to the webinar by clicking here.

This webinar was recorded on June 24th, 2020. To view a recording of this webinar, please click here. 

Presenter:

Brigit Rollins, Staff Attorney, National Agricultural Law Center

Brigit began her life in Sonoma County, in the heart of California’s wine country. Growing up, she was surrounded by small farms, dairies, and wineries, which ultimately led to a passion for agriculture and the environment. She attended Sonoma State University where she earned a Bachelor of Arts in environmental studies, and a minor in studio arts. While at Sonoma State, Brigit studied different types of agricultural methods and how those methods could be used to promote environmental sustainability. After graduating from Sonoma State in 2015, she started as a law student at Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland, Oregon. While at Lewis & Clark, she worked as a student clerk for the Western Resources Legal Center, where she worked on cases assisting small ranches, farms, and municipalities. During her time at Lewis & Clark, she also interned with the California Farm Bureau Federation, and worked as a law clerk for the Sacramento-based environmental law firm Somach Simmons & Dunn. While at the California Farm Bureau, Brigit focused on Environmental Species Act issues and water law issues, as well as issues specific to California. While at Somach Simmons & Dunn, Brigit expanded her work on water law and participated in work involving federal Indian law. On campus, Brigit was on the board of Lewis & Clark’s Food & Ag Law Society and served as a student member of the ABA Public Lands Committee.

Brigit began her work at the Center as a research fellow during her second year of law school. As a research fellow, Brigit worked on a wide variety of agricultural law topics ranging from liability issues to the new frontier of lab-grown meat. In 2019, Brigit graduated from Lewis & Clark and joined the Center full-time. At the Center, her primary area of research and scholarship is environmental law as it intersects with agriculture. She maintains an interest in promoting sustainability and environmental health through agriculture and resource use.

Research & Materials:

PowerPoint Presentation

Webinar: The Deal with Dicamba: An Overview of Dicamba-Related Litigation

The Deal with Dicamba: Part One, Overview (1/22/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: Part Two, Lanham Act claims (1/29/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: Part Three, State law failure to warn claims (2/12/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: Part Four, Civil conspiracy claims (2/26/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: Part Five, Trespass and nuisance claims (3/11/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: Part Six, Sherman Act claims (3/25/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: Part Seven, ESA and FIFRA claims (4/8/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: Part Eight, Arkansas state court cases (4/15/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: Ninth Circuit Vacates EPA Registration (6/5/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: EPA Issues Cancel Order for Dicamba Herbicides (6/10/2020)

The Deal with Dicamba: Plaintiffs Challenge EPA Cancellation Order (6/18/2020)