EPA Announces Endangered Species Protection Program
On November 2, the U.S. EPA published the Endangered Species Protection Program (ESPP) Field Implementation. The role of the ESPP is to carry out responsibilities under FIFRA in compliance with the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The purpose of the ESA is to protect and promote the recovery of animal and plant species that are threatened or in danger of becoming extinct and to ensure that the critical habitat upon which they depend is not destroyed or adversely modified. A section in the ESA requires federal agencies such as the EPA to ensure that their actions (such as licensing of pesticides) are not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any listed species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of critical habitat.
The ESPP will only address pesticides that are used outdoors. If a pesticide’s label only provides for indoor uses, the material will not be subject to the program. Indoor use includes application within transport vehicles and within any structure with enclosed walls, and a roof, such as buildings and greenhouses. For those pesticides that may be applied indoors but may end up outdoors (cattle dips, cooling tower treatments), decisions will be made on a case by case basis. If in the course of registration, the EPA decides that a pesticide may affect an endangered species, several options exist. The Agency will consult with U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service and changes in the registration may be made to avoid jeopardizing endangered species or critical habitat. The EPA may also ask for public input to limit potential risks. When changes to a pesticide’s use are necessary to protect a listed species, and those changes are geographically specific, EPA intends to implement those changes through Endangered Species Protection Bulletins. The bulletins will be at a county scale, with specific geographic areas indicated within the county where use limitations exist. The bulletin will be referenced on the pesticide label by a generic statement that tells the user that the product may harm some endangered or threatened species or their critical habitat; that the user must follow the use limitations in the bulletin for the county, and how they may access the bulletin for their county and pesticide use. The bulletins will identify the species of concern, name the active ingredients for which use limitations apply and describe the limitation required, as well as provide a map of occurrence and a description or picture of the organism if possible. These procedures should be in place within six months, or roughly early April, 2006. (Federal Register, 11/2/05).
