Federal Interagency Working Group to Hold Public Meeting on Endangered Species Pesticide Issues
For Release: January 5, 2022
A federal interagency working group (IWG) is holding a public listening session on January 27, 2022, to hear stakeholder perspectives on improving the Endangered Species Act (ESA) section 7 consultation process for federal pesticide decisions. At the listening session, the IWG is seeking perspectives on three questions:
- How could pesticide mitigation measures for ESA species be adopted and implemented in a timely and effective manner?
- What are other priority actions the IWG should consider pursuing to improve the pesticide consultation process?
- What future opportunities, if any, should the IWG consider for stakeholder engagement?
Members of the public may register to speak on any or all of the questions. The IWG will use the registration information to allocate the amount of time per speaker.
The IWG, created under the 2018 Farm Bill, consists of five federal agencies: The White House Council on Environmental Quality, Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, Department of the Interior, and Environmental Protection Agency. The IWG is charged with identifying and implementing improvements to the pesticide consultation process, including by engaging with stakeholders. The upcoming listening session is one way the IWG is fulfilling our duty to stakeholders.
Logistics
The January 27, 2022 meeting will be held via webinar from 1:00 – 3:00 PM (ET). A meeting link and agenda will be sent to everyone who registers for the event.
Members of the public may register to speak at the meeting on any or all of the three questions by indicating which question(s) they want to speak on. Please register to speak by 5:00 PM (ET) January 20, 2022. Attendees who do not wish to speak at the meeting can select the “Attend and listen-only” option.