EPA’s August 20, 2024, Herbicide Strategy is a framework for shaping pesticide decisions—not a new set of directions that automatically applies to every farm. For growers and applicators, the practical question is whether the current label for a specific herbicide and crop or use site calls for mitigation, and what that label requires. If it refers to EPA’s runoff and erosion mitigation menu, the label sets the points target; existing practices may count, but only when they meet the menu’s criteria.
What the strategy covers—and why EPA created it
The final strategy guides how EPA identifies protections for federally listed species when it registers new conventional herbicide active ingredients or reevaluates existing registrations. Its stated scope is conventional agricultural herbicides used in the lower 48 states and species listed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS). EPA says pesticide impacts on species listed by the National Marine Fisheries Service are addressed through a separate initiative.
EPA says the strategy is intended to address potential effects on more than 900 federally endangered and threatened species and designated critical habitat. The scale of potential use is also substantial: EPA, citing the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Census of Agriculture, reported that approximately 264 million cropland acres were treated with herbicides in 2022. EPA says many future Endangered Species Act consultations can take five years or more; that is EPA’s general description of consultation duration, not a timetable for any particular pesticide or farm.
The strategy is meant to identify protections earlier and make later consultations more efficient. EPA considers where species and habitat occur, species’ biological needs, how pesticides might move, and the potential effects if they reach a species. The aim is to target protections where they are needed rather than apply one universal set of measures everywhere.
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What growers and applicators need to do
The strategy itself does not impose use restrictions. It informs future EPA registration and registration-review decisions. A product’s applicable, current label is the document that tells a user whether mitigation is required and what to do. For runoff and erosion, EPA says the menu applies only when the label references it; the label establishes the number of points required for the crop or use site.
- Identify the exact product and use. Confirm the pesticide product and the crop or use site being treated.
- Read the current approved label. Look for directions referencing EPA’s runoff and erosion mitigation menu, along with any spray-drift directions.
- Record the applicable requirements. If the label uses the menu, note the point target for that crop or use site and any other directions that apply.
- Check the field against the menu. Compare practices already in place and field or application characteristics with the menu’s criteria; do not assume a practice earns points without confirming its details.
- Get help if the criteria are unclear. EPA identifies runoff and erosion specialists and conservation-program contacts as possible implementation support.
A general announcement about the strategy is not a substitute for the product label. It does not, by itself, tell a grower to install a buffer, plant cover crops, stop using a herbicide, or take a fixed number of mitigation steps.
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How the mitigation menu works
When a label calls for the runoff and erosion menu, users can meet its point target through qualifying measures and certain field or application characteristics. EPA determines the target through its pesticide decision process on a use-site or crop basis, so the required points can differ between products and uses. The label—not a general description of the strategy—provides the applicable target.
EPA describes possible ways to reduce pesticide movement through runoff or spray drift, including cover crops, conservation tillage, windbreaks, and adjuvants. In some runoff situations, measures such as berms may fully address the concern. EPA also recognizes NRCS practices, state or private stewardship programs, consultation with a runoff and erosion specialist, and some geographic characteristics—such as flat land or very low precipitation—as factors that may reduce mitigation needs. These options are not automatic exemptions: whether they matter depends on the pesticide action, applicable label, and menu criteria.
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Menu points can also reflect characteristics or application parameters, not just newly adopted field practices. EPA’s examples include a low runoff-vulnerability county, a flat field slope, micro-sprinklers, or treating only a small portion of a field. A field’s eligibility and the points associated with a measure must be checked against the applicable menu version and label.
EPA said in October 2024 that its online menu included additional measures and point descriptions, a calculator for existing practices, conservation-program information, and an archive of earlier versions. EPA also explained that the online menu can be updated without revising thousands of pesticide labels every time. Because online menu content may change, users should consult its current version when applying a label’s directions.
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Strategy versus label: what determines the farm-level obligation?
| Question | General strategy | Product label and applicable menu |
|---|---|---|
| Does it directly impose use directions? | No. EPA says the strategy itself imposes no use restrictions. | Yes, when a pesticide action and label establish applicable directions. |
| Does it set a farm’s point target? | No universal point target applies to all herbicides or farms. | The label states the required points for the relevant crop or use site when it references the menu. |
| Can existing practices matter? | It recognizes that mitigation can account for practices already in place. | Qualifying practices or characteristics may earn points when they satisfy the applicable menu criteria. |
| What should a user check? | Its scope and role in guiding EPA decisions. | The current approved label, relevant use, mitigation directions, point requirement, and applicable menu details. |
Runoff and erosion are not the same as spray drift
The strategy and mitigation options address different ways pesticide can move. Runoff and erosion measures concern movement from treated land with water or eroded soil; spray-drift measures concern movement during application. A label may include directions relevant to either pathway. A grower should follow the directions that apply to the product and use rather than treating a runoff point total as a substitute for spray-drift instructions.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the atrazine example does—and does not—show
On December 3, 2024, EPA described an updated atrazine mitigation proposal using the strategy’s menu and points approach. For fields in watersheds with predicted concentrations above a revised 9.7 µg/L level of concern but below 45.4 µg/L, EPA proposed three mitigation points; at or above 45.4 µg/L, it proposed six points. EPA also proposed nationwide runoff measures for atrazine.
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Those figures describe EPA’s 2024 proposal, which was open for public comment—not a finalized decision, a current direction for every atrazine user, or a rule for other herbicides. The announcement alone does not establish atrazine’s status in 2026. Anyone making an atrazine-specific decision should check the current docket and approved label.
What this means for costs and farm planning
The strategy recognizes practices and field conditions that may already be part of a farm’s operation, so mitigation does not necessarily mean adopting a new practice in every case. But whether an existing practice counts depends on the pesticide label and applicable menu; purchasing seed or equipment, or adopting a practice in name only, does not by itself establish compliance.
EPA’s described framework does not quantify a typical farm’s compliance cost, yield effect, or workload. Those outcomes depend on the product, crop or use site, label requirements, field conditions, and practices already in place. A reliable farm-level estimate therefore requires checking the actual product and field rather than assigning a single cost to the strategy.
EPA Deputy Assistant Administrator for Pesticide Programs Jake Li called finalizing the strategy “a historic step in EPA meeting its Endangered Species Act obligations.” For agricultural users, its practical significance is that future pesticide decisions may translate into product- and use-specific label directions, with a menu that can recognize qualifying existing practices—not that every grower received the same new restriction on August 20, 2024.
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