Illinois-specific dicamba restrictions continue in 2021

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois Department of Agriculture registered dicamba products for use on soybeans in 2021 that includes restrictions that differ from the federal label.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency approved five-year registrations Oct. 27 for two over-the-top dicamba products — XtendiMax with VaporGrip Technology and Engenia Herbicide — and extended the registration for an additional OTT dicamba product, Tavium Plus VaporGrip Technology.

The approved federal label includes a cutoff date of June 30 for application of these products on soybeans. However, IDOA will be utilizing its authority pursuant to Section 24(a) of the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act and relevant provisions of the Illinois Pesticide Act to impose a cutoff date of June 20 for application on soybeans.

In addition to the June 20 cutoff date, IDOA also includes the following additional application restrictions for application of these products on soybeans:

• Temperature restriction of 85 degrees.

• Requirement to consult the FieldWatch sensitive crop registry www.fieldwatch.com before application.

• Prohibiting application if the wind is blowing toward any Illinois Nature Preserves Commission site that is adjacent to the proposed field of application.

• Prohibiting application when the wind is blowing toward an adjacent residential area.

These Illinois provisions were also imposed in 2020.

Other requirements in both the state and federal labels include:

• Requiring an approved pH-buffering agent, also known as a volatility-reducing agent, be tank mixed with dicamba products prior to all applications.

• Requiring a downwind buffer of 240 feet and 310 feet in areas where listed endangered species are located.

• Additional recordkeeping items.

“This decision was made after evaluating several factors, including the reduction of pesticide misuse cases involving the use of dicamba on soybeans from 2019 to 2020,” said IDOA Acting Director Jerry Costello II.

“In 2020, the department included an 85-degree temperature restriction in addition to the June 20 cutoff date, resulting in an 80% decrease in dicamba misuse complaints.”

According to IDOA, there was a record 723 dicamba-related misuse complaints in 2019 and 148 complaints in 2020 after further restrictions were put in place.

Online Training

Now that the labels are approved, the Illinois Fertilizer and Chemical Association announced online dicamba training as required on the labels will commence soon.

As soon as training becomes available, IFCA will post details on its Illinois Dicamba Training website: www.ifca.com/IllinoisDicambaTraining.