EPA Revokes Approval of Dow Chemical's Enlist Duo Herbicide -- Update
November 25 2015 - 12:22PM
Dow Jones News
By Jesse Newman
The Environmental Protection Agency has withdrawn approval for a
Dow Chemical Co. herbicide designed to be used on genetically
engineered crops, saying it has new information that suggests the
weedkiller is more toxic to surrounding plants than previously
thought.
The move comes just over a year after Dow's Enlist Duo
herbicide, which includes a new formulation of the chemical 2,4-D,
was sanctioned by the environmental agency for use in six states,
enabling Dow to start selling corn and soybean seeds that have been
genetically modified to withstand sprays of the herbicide
blend.
Shares of Dow Chemical fell 2.7% to $51.92 in late-morning
trading in New York.
Following the EPA's approval of Enlist Duo, several
environmental-advocacy groups including the Center for Food Safety
and Earthjustice sued the agency, arguing it had failed to
adequately consider the pesticide's effects on endangered plants
and animals.
The EPA said new information, which Dow hadn't provided to the
agency before Enlist Duo's approval, could lead it to a "different
decision" about restrictions for farmers' use of the herbicide.
Garry Hamlin, a spokesman for Dow, said Wednesday that the
company is confident in the data supporting Enlist Duo.
"We are working with EPA to quickly provide further assurances
that our product's conditions of registered use will continue to
protect the environment, including threatened and endangered plant
species," he said. "We expect that these new evaluations will
result in a prompt resolution of all outstanding issues."
"The decision by EPA to withdraw the illegally approved Enlist
Duo crops is a huge victory for the environment and the future of
our food," said George Kimbrell, a senior attorney for the Center
for Food Safety.
Enlist Duo and supporters of the herbicide argued that the new
version of 2,4-D, a decades-old chemical, is safer for farmers and
neighboring crops than older versions, and is badly needed by
farmers who have been combating fast-growing weeds that have
developed defenses against glyphosate, a widely used weedkiller
sold by Monsanto Co. as Roundup. Enlist Duo combines 2,4-D and
glyphosate.
Write to Jesse Newman at jesse.newman@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
November 25, 2015 12:07 ET (17:07 GMT)
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