Facing Extinction? EPA Analysis Says Imidacloprid And Other Popular Neonic Insecticides Widely Used in Wine Grapes Put Bees, Birds and Endangered Species At Risk

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued an in-depth analysis May 1 showing that three leading insecticides–all of which are neonics–negatively impact endangered species, including bees and birds. 

That means the EPA is not complying with the Endangered Species Act.

This map, from California's Tracking California app, shows where neonics were used in 2018 on wine grape vineyards alone: 

Neonic use on wine grapes, 2018 PUR data (DPR)
Map source: https://trackingcalifornia.org/pesticides/pesticide-mapping-tool

The most popular neonic, imidacloprid, was banned in the EU in 2018, but is still permitted for use in the U.S. It's also at the top of bee lovers "ban this" list, as hundreds of studies show it is quite toxic to bees and birds. It's still legal in the U.S., due to pressure from the U.S.'s corn industry lobby. Corn seeds are commonly coated with imidacloprid.

Imidacloprid use on wine grapes, 2018 PUR data (DPR)
Map source: https://trackingcalifornia.org/pesticides/pesticide-mapping-tool

IMIDACLOPRID

In California, imidacloprid is quite popular with wine grape growers who use it primarily to protect against vine mealybug. 

The data from California's Dept. of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) from 2021 shows that wine grape growers reported using 62,104 pounds of it on 161,744 acres. That's more than a quarter of the state's vineyards.

Organic growers are prohibited from neonics and do not use them, but neonic insecticides are widely used by both conventional and sustainable growers across the state, including in the high priced wine regions like Sonoma, where growers applied 2,027 pounds of it on 7,742 acres. In Napa, growers applied 253 pounds on 5,141 acres (about 1/8th of the vines).

Elsewhere, in cheap wine grape growing regions, the state reports that Madera County growers used 7,489 pounds on 18,882 acres, and in San Joaquin County (which includes Lodi), growers used 8,795 pounds on 21,176 acres.

The newly issued 2023 EPA assessment says that the three neonics are putting 200 species at risk. 

The report "predicted there is a likelihood of jeopardy for 158 [endangered] species," resulting from imidacloprid use alone. 

A May 5, 2023 CBD press release stated that the EPA's May 1 analysis:

 "...found that 166, or 9% of all endangered species, are likely to be jeopardized by clothianidin.

For imidacloprid, 199 species, or 11% of all endangered plants and animals, are likely to be jeopardized.

Thiamethoxam was found to likely jeopardize the continued existence of 204, or 11% of all endangered species."

The CBD said neonics' effectiveness stems from the fact that "these insecticides are systemic, meaning they are absorbed by plants, making the entire plant deadly toxic, including its nectar, pollen and fruit. Neonicotinoids are also highly persistent and can linger in soil for years, causing long-term harm." 

The EPA analysis says:

"..imidacloprid is characterized as highly toxic to bees, highly toxic to birds and moderately toxic to mammals on an acute exposure basis. Available data suggest potential effects to honeybee and bumble bee colonies that manifest as impacts to numbers of adults and decreases in brood. Chronic exposures to birds and mammals lead to decreases in body weight and egg production in birds.

In a press released issued a year ago, the Center for Biological Diversity (CBD) wrote, "The EPA’s assessments of clothianidin, imidacloprid and thiamethoxam marked the first time the agency has completed biological evaluations of any neonicotinoids’ harms to the nation’s most imperiled plants and animals. Species found to be harmed by all three of the neonicotinoids include rusty patched bumblebees, whooping cranes, chinook salmon, northern long-eared bats and orcas."

The nonprofit advocacy group went on to say:

“These deeply troubling findings leave no doubt that these dangerous pesticides are silencing the songs of frogs, the flutter of butterfly wings and the buzz of bees,” said Lori Ann Burd, environmental health director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Many of the species harmed by neonicotinoids are experiencing precipitous declines, and this EPA’s choices may well determine whether or not they go extinct.”

“The EPA’s analysis shows we’ve got a five-alarm fire on our hands, and there’s now no question that neonicotinoids play an outsized role in our heartbreaking extinction crisis,” said Burd. "The EPA has to use the authority it has to take fast action to ban these pesticides so future generations don’t live in a world without bees and butterflies and the plants that depend on them.”

CLOTHIANIDIN MAP

Map source: https://trackingcalifornia.org/pesticides/pesticide-mapping-tool

THIAMETHOXAM MAP

Map source: https://trackingcalifornia.org/pesticides/pesticide-mapping-tool

Note: California is not the only state that uses these fungicides on wine grapes. It IS the only state in which it is mandatory for growers to report their use and the only state that provides these records.

Learn more about neonics in this documentary from DW, German public television.