New Federal Working Group Announced to Improve Protection of Endangered Species & Pesticide Registration

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt announced last week a memorandum of agreement that establishes  an interagency working group to coordinate Endangered Species Act (ESA) consultations for pesticide registrations and registration review. The interagency agreement is between the EPA, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Marine Fisheries Service (collectivity referred to as “the Services).

 

For years, both the EPA and the Services have disagreed on the best way to evaluate ESA consultations for crop protection products because each agency has different areas of expertise.

 

The memorandum of agreement recognizes the unique skills each agency brings to the protection of threatened species and directs the working group to: (1) outline a legal and regulatory framework by analyzing the relevant statutes, regulations, and case law, (2) review past pesticide consultation practices to learn from those experiences, (3) develop scientific and policy approaches that will increase the accuracy and timeliness of the pesticide consultation process, and (4) document the proposed approach through a memorandum of understanding, revised regulations, or another legal mechanism.

 

“The current Endangered Species Act pesticide consultation process is broken,” said EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt in announcing a new interagency working group. The memorandum of agreement notes that while the EPA is required to complete registration review of more than 700 cases by 2022, it has taken EPA and the Services several years to address just three active ingredients under what was supposed to be a new and improved approach.

 

NAAA will keep members updated on the recommendations of this working group as it develops. More in-depth information on the Endangered Species Act can be viewed on NAAA’s issue page. Additionally, the spring 2018 issue of Agricultural Aviation will have a report on the how the broken ESA consolation process hurts both endangered species and the agricultural community.

NAAA Develops ‘Preseason’ Press Release for Members to Raise Awareness about Forthcoming Ag Aviation Activities in Their Area

Promoting Aerial Application to the Weed Science Society of America

NAAA’s Dr. Scott Bretthauer spoke on January 31 at a special symposium at the 2018 Annual meeting of the Weed Science Society of America in Arlington, Virginia. The symposium was entitled “Fostering Sustainable Programs to Improve Pesticide Applications and Promote Resistance Management”, and the goal of the symposium was to foster cooperation among academics, industry, growers, and the U.S. EPA for managing off-target pesticide movement and managing herbicide resistance. NAAA was invited by session organizer Rick Keigwin, director of EPA’s Office of Pesticide Programs to discuss the benefits of agricultural aviation and some of the technologies and techniques used by agricultural aviators to make on-target aerial applications.

 

Dr. Bretthauer began by discussing the many benefits aerial applications offer for making pesticide applications, including timeliness of applications and the ability to treat a crop when the ground is wet. One issue often discussed by weed scientists is the importance of spraying weeds when they are small, which is often not accomplished for a variety of reasons. These reasons include the need to treat many acres in a small amount of time and poor weather conditions that keep ground rigs out of fields. He stressed that aerial applicators have the ability to get far more acres treated in a given period of time than ground rigs and should be used more often to make certain herbicide applications are made when weeds are smaller and easier to control.

 

Next, he discussed how aerial applicators select nozzles and set them up to create the desired droplet size. He provided examples of the variables that determine droplet size including nozzle type, orifice size, operating pressure, and deflection angle. The USDA-ARS Aerial Application Technology Research Unit’s spray droplet models were used to highlight key points for aerial nozzle selection and show how certain factors can be used to make droplets appropriate for herbicide applications. He emphasized that agricultural aircraft can be set up to create coarse or larger droplet spectrums, and provided an example of a setup that would provide a coarse droplet at 160 mph.

 

 

 

The impact of reducing boom length relative to wingspan and rotor diameter on reducing the potential for drift was discussed next. Results from pattern testing, the AgDISP model, and drift research highlighted how shortening the boom can mitigate drift while only making a slight reduction in productivity. It was pointed out that using a shortened boom was a topic of the PAASS program in 2017-2018 and that the audience response polling indicated a strong interest in this concept. Use of a right-hand boom shut-offs as a drift mitigation tool was also covered. Dr. Bretthauer finished up discussing two other advantages aerial applicators have over ground rigs – the ability to monitor weather conditions on site and the ability to make multiple applications in order to use wind direction to avoid drift on sensitive areas.

NAAA 2018 Industry Survey Startup Problem Corrected

Last week the first mailing of invitations to participate in the NAAA 2018 Industry Survey of Part 137 Operators and Pilots was sent out by US Mail. The letters were sent to all holders of Part 137 certificates on the FAA’s list of certificate holders. Unfortunately, some of the first people to attempt the survey found it would lock up on certain questions. Several days of troubleshooting corrected the error and the survey is now running smoothly. Anyone beginning the survey should have no trouble. Revised instructions are being mailed to the people that received the invitation letter. Please remember if entering the survey address in the browser, type it into the address bar near the top of the page, not into your search engine’s search bar. If a password is required, enter 27541.

 

If you have started the survey and it locked up, you will need to start over to keep the survey site from returning to where you left off in the flawed program. Please follow one of these instructions:

1. Delete your browser history before starting the survey over.
2. If you are not able to delete your browser history, start survey over with an alternative device other than the one you previously used. For instance, if you started on an iPad or other mobile device, try using a personal computer. Or if you started on a personal computer, try using a different computer or a mobile device.
3. Contact Tim Struttmann at tim.struttmann09@gmail.com if any problems arise.

Remember, you should not have to do any of these solutions if you have not previously started the survey.

 

Within the next few days, all pilots and operators for which NAAA has an email address should receive an email requesting they participate in the online survey. When responding to the email notification, simply click on the link included in the email and begin the survey. The survey is made up of two separate sets of questions depending on whether you are an Operator or Pilot. The response to the first question asking if you are an owner/operator of a business that holds a part 137 certificate will direct you to the proper set of questions. Operators should answer for the entire operation and pilots should answer based on the aircraft they usually fly.

 

The survey is web-based on a secure website. NAAA has teamed with Tim Struttmann, a certified statistician, who successfully conducted the 2012 survey, to assist with collecting the requested data. Individual responses will be kept confidential. NAAA, Mr. Struttmann and his team have entered into confidentiality and non-disclosure agreements to protect the privacy of the data collected.

 

Many of the questions used in the 2018 survey are the same as those used in the 2012 survey. This allows the NAAA to track changes in the industry, which is beneficial for showing the adoption of technologies and techniques that improve accuracy and safety. As an example, recently the EPA has accepted that GPS is the dominant means of swath guidance in agricultural aviation and that human flaggers are seldom used.

 

Completing the survey shouldn't take long—roughly 20 minutes. Remember, the value of this survey is only as strong as the type of information you submit and the number of completed surveys we can collect. The value of the survey results can be substantial.  Often times we have used the real industry survey data to counter EPA theoretical overestimates of risk made about our industry which has resulted in saving aerial labels on crop protection products and preventing restrictions on aerial labels on crop protection products. Trends indicate a large number in the industry are using closed contained mixing/loading systems and GPS to minimize worker exposure. Trends also indicate that a large number in the industry are using smokers to gauge wind direction. This is the type of information we need to show the EPA. Also, EPA will not give much credibility to the data we collect if only 3 percent of U.S. operators submit a survey; however, if we have a 95 percent industry response rate it adds significant credibility to the data we collected.

 

If you are an ag pilot or operator and do not receive an invitation or have any problems completing the survey, please email NAAA’s contractor Tim Struttmann at tim.struttmann09@gmail.com

Members Only Content Expiring Soon! Renew Today!

Membership-only content expires on Feb. 15th. If you haven’t already renewed your membership, renew today so you don’t lose access to this NAAA eNewsletter and other membership perks. By renewing today you’ll be included in this year's 2018 Membership Directory--the best resource to connect you with NAAA members, government officials and allied companies who provide you with the parts and services to run your business.

 

Once you renew your membership, you can take advantage of NAAA’s new Recruit-Rebate-Rewards Program where you can receive a 10 percent rebate for recruiting new members to join NAAA. Click here for more details so you can start referring and earning today!

 

NAAA membership is as important as ever as NAAA needs resources to continue pushing for stringent tower-marking requirements and to promote the safe integration of UAVs into the national airspace system (NAS) to ensure the safety of ag pilots (click here to view NAAA’s UAV safety campaign video). Similarly, NAAA has worked hard to make sure EPA and manufacturers register crop protection products with labels allowing aerial use.

 

NAAA continues to advocate daily on these and other important issues for the safety and continuity of the aerial application industry. An NAAA membership comes with numerous benefits whether you’re an operator, pilot or allied company. Take a look at this infographic to see why your membership matters:

Online Renewal Instructions

You can renew your membership at AgAviation.org by logging into your account in the upper right hand corner. Once you’ve logged in, click Membership Renewal on the left-hand toolbar (as seen in the graphic below).

 

Auto Renewal Information

NAAA offers auto renewal for membership and NAAREF donations. When you sign up for auto renewal, NAAA will automatically charge the credit card on file every Sept. 1. There are four ways to sign up for auto renewal:

1. When you receive your renewal statement in September, mark the box in the payment area for auto renewal.
2. Renew your membership online and you’ll be asked during the process if you’d like auto renewal.
3. Call the NAAA office at (202) 546-5722 and request auto renewal.
4. Return the membership form in the next Agricultural Aviation magazine and mark the box in the payment area for auto renewal.

NAAA and NAAREF Board Meetings Feb. 16-17

We look forward to seeing you Feb. 16-17 at the NAAA and NAAREF Board Meetings, with a couple of meetings beginning on Feb. 15. All meetings are open to NAAA members. We will be back at the Hilton Old Town Alexandria for our meetings. The hotel is across the street from the King Street Metro stop (take either Blue or Yellow Line), which is the second stop south of Ronald Regan National Airport (DCA). You can view a map of the metro system here.

You can view a schedule here. Please email Lindsay Barber if you will plan to attend the meetings.
 
Hilton Old Town Alexandria, 1767 King Street, Alexandria, VA 22314
Rate: $148/night plus tax

 

Reservations: Hotel room block is closed; contact Lindsay is you need assistance in booking a room. The night of 2/14 is sold out at the hotel.