Kerry Richards; University of Delaware Pesticide Safety Education Program; pesticidesafety@udel.edu
Growers in Delaware have been fortunate that they have not faced the significant challenges from Dicamba damage that have become an increasing problem nationwide. EPA has reached an agreement with Monsanto, BASF and DuPont on measures to further minimize the potential for drift damage to neighboring crops from the use of Dicamba formulations used to control weeds in genetically modified cotton and soybeans. New requirements for the use of Dicamba “over the top” (application to growing plants) will allow farmers to make informed choices for seed purchases for the 2018 growing season. Manufacturers have voluntarily agreed to label changes that impose additional requirements for “over the top” use of these products next year including, most significantly:
- Classifying products as “restricted use,” permitting only certified applicators with special training, and those under their supervision, to apply them;
- Dicamba-specific training for all certified applicators to reinforce proper use;
- Requiring farmers to maintain specific records regarding the use of these products to improve compliance with label restrictions;
- Limiting applications to when maximum wind speeds are below 10 mph (from 15 mph) to reduce potential spray drift;
- Reducing the times during the day when applications can occur;
- Including tank clean-out language to prevent cross contamination; and
- Enhancing susceptible crop language and record keeping with sensitive crop registries to increase awareness of risk to especially sensitive crops nearby.
For more information:https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/registration-dicamba-use-genetically-engineered-crops