Court nixes EPA’s efforts to vacate herbicide label

Enlist DuoDow AgroSciences can move ahead with its Enlist Duo herbicide, which is paired with soybean, corn or cotton varieties tolerant to the chemical premix.

The U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently struck down a motion by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency filed last December to vacate registration of Enlist Duo. The EPA originally had approved the herbicide in 2014.

The court’s decision allows Dow to sell Enlist Duo while the EPA continues to review the herbicide.

Enlist Duo is a premix of glyphosate and a new formulation of 2,4-D that contains the proprietary drift retardant, Colex-D technology.

It is currently registered for use in 15 states, including Arkansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Dakota and Wisconsin.

EPA’s actions stemmed from a complaint filed by family farm and environmental groups. They argued that the agency had not adequately evaluated human health concerns and or the chemical’s impact on endangered species.

Earlier this month, Dow announced that it planned to launch Enlist cotton, with or without the paired herbicide, this season. The EPA has not yet approved the use of Enlist Duo on cotton.

Dow also is waiting for Chinese approval of the trait before it launches Enlist corn, and it will only have Enlist soybeans for seed production this season.

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