New Enlist Registrations

ROCKVILLE, Md. (DTN) -- EPA granted new registrations and labels for Corteva Agriscience's Enlist One and Enlist Duo herbicides on Jan. 11. The products are registered for seven years but will not be available to growers in a limited number of counties with federally listed endangered species.

Enlist One (2,4-D-choline) and Enlist Duo (2,4-D-choline and glyphosate pre-mix) are designed to be sprayed over-the-top of corresponding 2,4-D-tolerant Enlist cotton, corn and soybeans. Their previous registration from 2017 was set to expire on Jan. 12, 2022.

The new Enlist registrations are among the first herbicides on the market with a full EPA analysis of their effect on endangered species and critical habitats, the agency noted in its news release. The agency is adding several new measures to the label to protect these federally listed species and habitats, as well as limit off-target movement and protect pollinators.

The new measures aimed at reducing off-target movement and protecting endangered species are:

-- The labels prohibit the use of Enlist One and Enlist Duo "in counties where EPA has identified risks to listed species that use corn, cotton or soybean fields for diet and/or habitat." The dozens of affected counties are listed on the labels and will be updated as needed via the agency's Bulletins Live Two website in the future. EPA expects minimal impact from these prohibitions because, in counties where Enlist Duo alone is banned, growers can use Enlist One, the agency stated in documents supporting the registration. And the counties where both products are banned represent "approximately 4% of cotton, 1% of corn, and a negligible percent of soybean acres nationally."

-- No applications permitted when rainfall is expected within 48 hours or when soils are fully saturated.

-- No irrigation that could produce runoff within 48 hours of application.

-- Users must select from a list of runoff reduction measures to reduce 2,4-D and glyphosate concentrations in runoff.

-- Only approved tank mixes, nozzles and spray pressures are permitted, found here: https://www.enlist.com/… and here: https://www.enlist.com/….

-- A downwind 30-foot infield buffer is required to protect sensitive areas.

The new measures aimed at protecting pollinators are:

-- No applications permitted after soybean and cotton crops are in bloom and might attract pollinators, such as honeybees.

-- A new requirement for Corteva to provide mandatory education and training materials "emphasize the importance of pollinators and pollinator habitat for species including, but not exclusive to, monarch butterflies."

The focus on monarch butterflies is the result of a lawsuit brought against EPA for its previous 2017 registration of Enlist Duo. In the summer of 2020, the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld the herbicide's registration but ordered EPA to reassess the risks of the pesticide to monarch butterflies. (See more on that here: https://www.dtnpf.com/….)

The new labels are approved for use in the following states: Alabama, Arkansas, Arizona, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

See more on EPA's decision to grant new labels to the Enlist herbicides here: https://www.epa.gov/….

Emily Unglesbee can be reached at Emily.unglesbee@dtn.com

Follow her on Twitter @Emily_Unglesbee

(c) Copyright 2022 DTN, LLC. All rights reserved.