WASHINGTON, Nov. 18, 2013- The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) will need to complete biological opinions on seven different pesticides for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regarding their effects on the California red-legged frog, as mandated by a settlement approved by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
The court approved the settlement between FWS, EPA and the Center for Biological Diversity on Nov. 4, according to announcement from the Service today.
The seven pesticides are: glyphosate, malathion, simazine, pendimethalin, permethrin, methomyl and myclobutanil. The terms of the settlement specify that the Service will deliver to EPA draft biological opinions for two of the seven pesticides no later than November 4, 2014, and deliver final biological opinions for all seven pesticides no later than November 4, 2015.
The California red-legged frog was listed as a threatened species under the ESA in 1996, and its critical habitat designation was updated in 2010. In October of 2006, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California issued a stipulated injunction to resolve a case brought against the EPA by the Center. The court’s injunction included use restrictions, such as buffer areas around certain habitats of the California red-legged frog. The pesticide use restrictions in the stipulated injunction are still in effect.
#30
For more news, go to www.agri-pulse.com