Appellate Victory in Pesticide Impact Dispute

Washington, DC—On February 15, the California Court of Appeals for the Third District issued a 39-page opinion upholding the California Department of Pesticide Registration's (CDPR) rejection of arguments that the use of certain pesticides causes significant adverse impacts on frogs in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.  The suit, Californians against Toxic Substances v. CDPR, had challenged CDPR's refusal to initiate “revaluation” of the registration of those pesticides.

The appellate court both affirmed the prior superior court decision on this issue and reported on its own independent review of the record.  It found that “the Department painstakingly considered the studies provided by [plaintiff/appellants] and found any link between pesticides and amphibian declines tenuous and unsupported by current scientific evidence.”

David B. Weinberg, chair of WRF's Chemicals, Safety and Environment Practice, represented the registrants of two of the challenged pesticides as real parties in interest and respondents in the case.