The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is investigating dicamba drift issues reported in southeastern Missouri. Pro Farmer reports the EPA executed search warrants earlier this month looking for signs that the herbicide had been used improperly. The searches were prompted by complaints that the herbicide damaged 41,000 acres of soybeans and other crops, reportedly because improperly applied dicamba drifted into neighboring fields. The herbicide can injure crops that are not resistance to dicamba. Reports of drift issues started surfacing this year in parts of the Midwest and Mid-South regions of the United States. The Missouri Department of Agriculture in August said it was investing more than 90 dicamba drift complaints. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch says insurance companies will not compensate farmers for losses caused by wrongful or “off-label” herbicide applications, leaving civil lawsuits as a potential recourse for growers trying to recover damages. Meanwhile, the EPA is expected to decide whether to approve “over the top” dicamba application on soybean fields later this fall.
From the National Association of Farm Broadcasting news service.