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The Pesticide Data Program

Helping growers and producers bring products to market

Growers requested a special-use permit from the EPA pursuant to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act, Section 18, which authorizes the EPA to allow the use of an unregistered pesticide, for a limited time, if an emergency condition exists. Emergency exemptions fall into four categories, each with a corresponding timeframe for the use of the specific pesticide: specific (situational, to prevent a significant economic loss or risk to a species or the environment; up to one year), quarantine (to prevent the spread of an invasive species; up to three years), public health (to control a threat to human health; up to one year), or crisis (a determined ‘immediate need’ of any of the above; up to fifteen days).

Before granting the Section 18 exemption, EPA required data on Bifenthrin residue levels on apples, pears, and peaches to be certain use would not cause unnecessary risk or harm to

consumers. The industry turned to the USDA for help. In response, PDP reached out to the state cooperative extension services, grower groups, and the BMSB Working Group. Together, they developed a sampling and testing action plan. Staff provided training sessions on proper sample collection and shipping procedures, and samples were collected on farms in the affected states after Bifenthrin was applied. This was a change from the routine collection method, but it helped the industry provide the requested data to the EPA.

The PDP’s laboratories also changed their testing methods to meet EPA’s specifications. Normally, PDP matches consumer practices (e.g., washing and coring apples prior to testing) to reflect actual pesticide application residues. Samples were unwashed and unpeeled for this survey. The resulting data showed no Bifenthrin residue levels above the EPA proposed tolerance for each fruit. As a result, the EPA approved the emergency Section 18 exemption for use on apples and peaches grown in the Mid-Atlantic states, and significant crop loss was prevented.

The Bifenthrin stink bug project is one example of the PDP’s continued support for American agriculture. Another example occurred in 2003 when the PDP assisted the industry by generating data to support the registration of triazole pesticides for a number of commodities.

Point of Fact
The Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act was enacted on June 25, 1947, giving the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the power to regulate the use of pesticides in the United States. Specifics of the Act charge the EPA with overseeing the registration for all pesticides, licensing for all pesticide applicators, re-registration of all pesticide products, and to regulate the storage, transportation, disposal, and recall of all pesticide products.

New data requirements for the metabolites (breakdown products) common to the triazole class of pesticides triggered a joint effort by the government and industry to gather data to support necessary triazole uses. The PDP was already testing several commodities for triazole pesticides, but the number of compounds tested in each type of commodity did not fully meet the EPA’s needs to conduct a risk assessment for the entire triazole class of compounds.

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