Opinion ID: 868147
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: EPA Regulation of Genetically Modified Plants

Text: The EPA indirectly regulates genetically modified plants through the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (“FIFRA”), 7 U.S.C. §§ 136–136y. FIFRA governs the use, sale, and labeling of herbicides like glyphosate. See Bates v. Dow Agrosciences LLC, 544 U.S. 431, 437 (2005). An herbicide must first be “registered” by the EPA before it can be distributed or sold in the United States. 7 U.S.C. §§ 136a(a),136j(a)(2)(F). The EPA registration process starts with the herbicide manufacturer providing the EPA with information about the herbicide. Id. § 136a(c)(1)(C), (F). The agency then evaluates the effectiveness of the herbicide and the adverse effects it will have on humans and the environment. See id. § 136a(c)(5); Headwaters, Inc. v. Talent Irrigation Dist., 243 F.3d 526, 530 (9th Cir. 2001). On the basis of this evaluation, the EPA then determines if it will permit the herbicide’s use on a given plant, and, if so, how much. The EPA sets the conditions for the herbicide’s use and places them in labeling instructions that a user must comply with. See 7 U.S.C. § 136j(a)(2)(G). The EPA reevaluates the herbicide every fifteen years, as part of a “re-registration process” in which the agency determines if it should continue permitting the herbicide’s use. Id. § 136a(g)(1)(A)(iv). The EPA originally registered glyphosate in 1974. In 2004 and 2005, the EPA approved the application of glyphosate to RRA after determining that the herbicide would not cause any unreasonable environmental risks so long as it was applied in accordance with its labeling instructions. These labeling instructions contain, among other things, prohibitions on glyphosate use near the habitats of threatened or endangered species. The EPA is currently in the process of CENTER FOR FOOD SAFETY V . VILSACK 11 “re-registering” glyphosate. The agency is scheduled to complete the re-registration process in 2015. Because the EPA’s FIFRA regulation deals with chemicals, the EPA exercises only limited jurisdiction over genetically modified crops. Such regulation is limited to plants that are modified to produce pesticides. See 40 C.F.R. §§ 174.1, 174.3. The EPA therefore does not regulate RRA, because the plant itself does not produce or secrete a pesticide.