Growers urged to contact EPA about insecticide

Society of American Florists and American Nursery & Landscape Assoc. are urging growers to contact EPA before Feb. 8, requesting that the agency allow the continued production and use of Kontos insecticide (spirotetramat), pending a new registration. Manufactured by Bayer Crop Science and distributed by OHP, Kontos is used to control adelgids, aphids, leafhoppers, mealybugs, psyllids, spider mites, spittlebugs, and whiteflies. It was approved for ornamentals in greenhouses, nurseries and interiorscapes by EPA in August, 2008. It has a 24-hour re-entry interval. A recent court order requires re-registration, and could prevent use even of supplies on hand.
EPA intends to issue a cancellation order for the insecticide as a result of a U.S. District Court decision in December. The court ruled that EPA’s failure to provide an opportunity for comment on the registration applications vacates the registrations of that chemical. Even though EPA had approved the applications for this chemical, once the court order goes into effect (Feb. 16, 2010), the registration will no longer be in effect. Bayer has appealed the court’s ruling, but the chemical’s future is uncertain.
As a result of the court decision, EPA intends to treat the manufacturer’s earlier applications as now “pending,” and to publish a new notice for comment on the application within the next few weeks. It will then decide whether or not the insecticide should be registered and, if so, what conditions and label language will be required.