Farmers and environmental groups have sued EPA for continuing use of a highly contested herbicide that has been tied to cancer risk.
The lawsuit filed Friday in the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals targets EPA’s reapproval of dicamba earlier this month. The Center for Biological Diversity and other groups argued in their lawsuit that the agency’s new rules are even looser than previous approvals, allowing year-round spraying and dropping buffer requirements meant to protect endangered species.
“There is no rationale for re-approving this incredibly harmful herbicide other than to line the pockets of the agri-chemical industry,” said Jim Goodman, National Family Farm Coalition president, in a statement. The coalition is among the groups challenging EPA in court.
Dicamba was introduced to fight resistant weeds about a decade ago. The herbicide is primarily sprayed on cotton and soybean plants genetically engineered to withstand it, but it’s also prone to drifting, which hurts other crops and wild habitats, according to the groups.
