Most chemical crop protection products are applied as aerial sprays, consisting of small droplets that are by nature light. Occasionally, when wind or an unexpected gust occurs, these droplets may drift to places other than their anticipated settling point while they are still suspended in the air.
In the past, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has proposed pesticide regulations to govern spray drift control that would prohibit agricultural pesticide application during times when wind exceeded a particular speed, among other proposed restrictions. CropLife America opposed these proposed regulations and raised concerns about them, given that weather conditions such as wind are typically regional and these proposed regulations did not allow for local flexibility.
EPA has also proposed “zero-drift” policies at times, but the government’s environmental agency itself has acknowledged that “zero-drift” is an impossible standard to meet. Growers are already subject to restrictions preventing them from spraying crop protection chemicals near occupied structures, endangered species habitats, and sensitive ecosystems; a “zero-drift” policy would severely hinder food producers’ ability to spray the crop protection chemicals necessary to increase food production and generate the crop yields on which their livelihoods depend.
