Agrow Daily News Quotes James V. Aidala Regarding Effects of Shutdown on Crop Protection Industry

In an October 7, 2013, story titled “US EPA’s Pesticide Programme Halted by Shutdown,” Agrow Daily News Alert quoted James V. Aidala: “Key OPP policy initiatives are also on hold, including the effort to address concerns about the decline of bees through revised labels for neonicotinoid insecticides. The EPA asked for registrants of four neonicotinoids – imidacloprid, dinotefuran, clothianidin and thiamethoxam – to submit revised labels by October 1st with the aim of getting the newly labelled products ready for next year (Agrow No 671, p 16). The timeframe was tight to start with, but could be even more difficult to meet if the shutdown drags on for several weeks. ‘Those new labels are likely just sitting there,’ says Jim Aidala, senior government consultant for the law firm, Bergeson & Campbell.

“Mr Aidala, a former assistant administrator with the EPA’s Office of Prevention, Pesticides and Toxic Substances, was with the Agency during the last government shutdown in 1995/96. He says that things have become far different now, notably the tone on Capitol Hill, and suggests there is greater uncertainty about how the shutdown gets ultimately resolved. ‘Respect for the government is lower than ever and the general attitude to government is more hostile now,’ Mr Aidala tells Agrow. ‘A shutdown never helps morale, and the prospect of not getting paid is far greater now.’ “