Iowa farmers make record number of pesticide misuse claims

About three-fourths of Shane Susie's 80-acre soybean field was damaged after getting hit with dicamba that drifted over his crops from neighboring fields.

The herbicide also savaged his family's trees, flowers and vegetable patch.

"We're not eating anything out of it this year," said the 30-year-old who farms near Kingsley in northwest Iowa.

He estimates his soybean damage losses at $15,000. With drought worries and low corn and soybean prices, "it will be a tough year." he said. "It makes a challenging year more challenging."

Susie and other Midwest farmers have been drawn into a national debate swirling around whether new dicamba versions are safe for growers to use.

Nationally, 2,242 farmers say dicamba has damaged an estimated 3.1 million acres, a University of Missouri report shows.

Iowa ag leaders are investigating a record 258 crop damage reports from pesticide misuse this year. About 100 complaints on 150,000 acres are tied to dicamba.

Monsanto and other ag giants like DuPont and BASF have developed seeds that are genetically modified so they can be sprayed with dicamba, killing weeds but leaving the crop unharmed.

At issue is whether the new dicamba products stay where they're sprayed — or move to neighboring fields, where they can damage non-resistant crops, fruits and vegetables, trees and flowers.

Volatility vs. applicator error

Monsanto claims the problems primarily come from farm application errors.

"We did 1,200-some odd tests in connection with registration of our product with EPA," said Scott Partridge, Monsanto's vice president of global strategy. "They confirmed to us what the label says — if it's followed ... there will be no off-target movement of dicamba by wind or volatization."

Some university weed scientists disagree.

"The big debate is whether or not the stuff is volatilizing," or turning from liquid to vapor, enabling it to easily move, potentially over a few days, said Robert Hartzler, an Iowa State University weed scientist.

"New formulations were supposed to have taken care of the volatility problem," he said, "but all the research suggests that they've reduced the volatility, but not to a level that's safe" after plants have emerged from the ground.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is talking with academic researchers, state farm regulators, and Monsanto and other manufacturers to determine whether new restrictions should be placed on the chemical's use.

"The underlying causes of the various damage incidents are not yet clear, as ongoing investigations have yet to be concluded," the EPA told the Register.

Monsanto said it's cooperating with the EPA's review and expects a decision soon.

Last week, the company challenged an Arkansas task force recommendation to ban the use of dicamba-related products after April 15 next year.

In July, the state issued a four-month prohibition on dicamba use. Arkansas farmers have logged 963 dicamba-related complaints this year.

Hartzler said he and other weed scientists support EPA restrictions on dicamba product-use after plants have emerged from the ground, a time that can vary depending on the state.

"If it is volatilizing, it’s nearly impossible to use, in my opinion, post-emergence," he said.

Hartzler said Monsanto and BASF are fighting restrictions because they would "greatly reduce the value" of their chemical and seed systems, which required "a huge investment" to develop over several years.

"The seed is where they make the majority of their money," Hartzler said. "So if the chemical is restricted and it no longer controls waterhemp or Palmer amaranth, farmers would not see the need to pay additional money" for that technology.

Iowa and U.S. farmers want more weapons in their battle against weeds that can't be killed with glyphosate, the active ingredient in Monsanto's popular Roundup Ready products.

Several Southern states are struggling with glyphosate-resistant Palmer amaranth, a rapidly growing, fast-adapting "super weed" that can quickly overrun cotton and soybean fields.

Palmer amaranth is creeping across Iowa, moving into about half of its counties. So far, the weed can be killed with glyphosate, but weed scientists say it's only a matter of time until it adapts to the the widely used chemical.

The Iowa Department of Agriculture has asked farmers in the state to check fields this harvest for Palmer amaranth, which can grow more than 7 feet tall.

Who will cover damage?

Partridge said about 75 percent of the 1,000 U.S. crop damage reports Monsanto has investigated are due to "failure to follow the label."

Monsanto continues to look into the other 25 percent to determine what role weather might have played, he said.

Partridge believes better education can reduce complaints and points to Georgia as an example. It required that chemical applicators become certified and has experienced no reports of drift damage.

With Monsanto expecting customer demand to double, he warned that Arkansas growers could see twice the damage if the state continues its ban in 2018. That could result in farmers using an older, more volatile version of the herbicide, he said.

Clark Porter, who farms near Waterloo, said he anticipates more farmers will look at using dicamba-tolerant seeds to reduce their damage risk.

Porter said two of his fields received dicamba damage — one when he sprayed using a tank contaminated with a dicamba product and another he believes was vapor drift. One field should see little reduction in yields; the other — just a few acres — will have losses, he said.

Depending on when it occurs, dicamba damage may have no impact or climb up to 40 percent in yield reduction, Hartzler said, based on damage reported in Iowa.

Pat Swanson, who farms near Ottumwa, said her family experienced no problems when they had a contractor spray 220 acres of soybeans.

"We were happy with the results," said Swanson, a Pioneer seed dealer. "We had no problems with drift."

The Iowa Soybean Association said it's working with farmers, researchers, manufacturers and others to find answers, so growers "can continue to have access to these important products and they can be assured that their own and their neighbors’ crops won’t be affected."

Susie, a Beck's Hybrids seed dealer, worries that his losses won't get covered, given the ongoing debate about whether the responsibility for the damage lies with dicamba makers or those applying their products.

Insurance adjusters have determined their clients followed label instructions when spraying the dicamba that damaged his fields. His only other option is to file a lawsuit against the applicators or join a class action suit against dicamba makers.

"I think it's a great product, but I'm not sure there was enough research done" to ensure it remains stable once it's applied, he said.

He agrees with Porter that farmers might feel forced to buy dicamba-tolerant seeds next year "to protect themselves."

"It's not what we should have to do. We shouldn't be fearful about getting damaged," Susie said.