WASHINGTON, D.C. — Farmers, businesses and associations worried about the potential for non-targeted plant injury from the use of the herbicides 2,4-D and dicamba have formed the Save Our Crops Coalition (SOCC).

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is considering a request by Dow AgroSciences, headquartered in Indianapolis, Ind., to deregulate its genetically modified (GMO) corn, soybean and cotton crops. Because those crops tolerate applications of 2,4-D, the coalition is concerned EPA approval would lead to an increased use of the chemical, thus broadening the chances that non-targeted specialty crops could be hurt, said Steve Smith, chair of the coalition. Smith is also director of agriculture with Elwood, Ind.-based Red Gold.

“We don’t see how these chemicals are compatible with the average crops grown in the Midwest,” he noted. “There are places in the country where these chemicals could work. They have areas with no homes and no specialty crops.

“But in the Midwest where we live, they’re just not very compatible. We should be working toward the same goal, and that is not to have damage.”

Although the chemicals may be spread through direct drift and spray tank contamination, the primary concern to Midwest agriculture is their inclination to volatilize – or for their active ingredient to evaporate. Literature is clear that the active ingredient could travel 1-2 miles, Smith said, adding there have been reports of more extensive distances.

The SOCC has about 30 partners representing thousands of farmers, he said. Those partners include the Indiana Vegetable Growers Assoc., the Ohio Produce Growers & Marketers Assoc., the Organic Valley Family of Farms, Del Monte Foods and the Ball Corp. The formation  announcementof SOCC was last week.

Attempts to reach Dow AgroSciences on Friday were unsuccessful; the company was closed due to Good Friday.

While Dow is working on a new 2,4-D formula that appears to be less volatile, there are still generic forms available that have volatilization concerns, Smith said.

The SOCC is not looking to stop GMO crops, he stressed, but it does oppose regulatory action that would result in herbicide use that causes substantial injury to non-target crops. “There are environmental groups working to stop GMOs, and that is certainly not our goal,” he said. “We just don’t think everyone sat down and looked at the cost (of deregulation on specialty crops).”

In addition to injury to specialty crops, home gardens and landscaping near areas treated with 2,4-D and dicamba could be at risk, he said. A tree farmer in Kentucky found his crop completely unmarketable for the following harvest season after it was exposed to off-target 2,4-D, according to a press release from SOCC.

“Our company was decimated by this chemical exposure,” Gary Phelps said in the release. “We continue to try to regain the confidence of our customer base, but it may never be the same.”

Herr Farms in Indiana, which sells a variety of products to customers in and near Chicago, has also had problems with off-target chemicals, Jody Herr said in the SOCC statement.

“Over the years, I have experienced several instances where an herbicide has volatilized and moved to my fields damaging our fresh market vegetable crops,” Herr explained. “With the possibility of an even longer application window and increased usage of these products, I fear the occurrences of volatilization and direct drift will continue to escalate.”

Smith predicts 130 million-140 million acres of corn and soybeans could be treated with the chemicals if the deregulation is approved by the EPA. In late February, the agency extended the comment period on the proposed deregulation an additional 60 days.