Tour highlights included Endangered Species Act and Integrated Pest Management considerations
WESTMINSTER, Colo., Oct. 7, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The Weed Science Society of America (WSSA) recently collaborated with the National Alliance of Independent Crop Consultants (NAICC) to provide an overview of Endangered Species Act (ESA) and Integrated Pest Management (IPM) issues for key federal agency representatives. Tour participants included scientists and professionals from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).
WSSA’s representatives recently participated in farm tour learning sessions for federal agency employees. Pictured here (L-R) in a North Carolina cotton farm are Cole Woolard, Science Policy Fellow; Hilary Sandler, WSSA President; Lee Van Wychen, Executive Director of Science Policy; Aleah Butler-Jones, Science Policy Fellow; Mark VanGessel, WSSA Liaison to EPA; and Bill Chism, WSSA Regulatory Consultant.
Recent WSSA and NAICC farm tour participants included scientists and professionals from the Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS).
“Not every EPA, FWS, and NMFS representative has an extensive agricultural background,” says Bill Chism, Ph.D., and WSSA ESA Committee Chair. “So, this was an incredible opportunity for all of us to learn from each other and better understand our different roles in our ESA work and how best to make it achievable by everyone.”
The tours were convened on September 23 and 24, 2025 on farms in North Carolina and Virginia. They included stops at Cedar Point Farms, Wakefield, Virginia; Tidewater Agronomics Research Farm, Belvedere, Virginia; Lassiter Farms, Rich Square, North Carolina; Fisher Family Partnership, Whitakers, North Carolina; and Mush Island Farms, Weldon, North Carolina. Virginia Tech University and North Carolina State Extension Specialists provided presentations, and the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, North Carolina Peanut Growers and Cotton Growers also participated in the tour.
“The WSSA and NAICC discussed ways to make it easier for herbicide users to protect threatened and endangered species and their critical habitat,” says Chism. “We also visited with area farmers who have been implementing IPM practices for decades. Weed management is a critical part of IPM, and without carrying out key components of IPM, such as crop rotation, use of cover crops, and select herbicide applications, our threatened and endangered species habitats would be in jeopardy.”
Tour participants were able to see cotton, peanut, and tobacco crops and their conservation and crop protection practices. Experts discussed the benefits of cover crops, the process of adding them to a farm management program, and the challenges and limitations that they may bring. Speakers also discussed the role that IPM plays in the ability to reduce pesticide use, improve soil health, reduce water runoff and improve biodiversity.
“We had a grower panel talking about ESA, and one highlight was the description of how bad farm economics are right now,” points out Chism. “Adapting to complex new ESA requirements will cost money. Commodity prices are low, and crop input and land rental costs are high, so many farmers are barely getting by or losing money. With the current economic situation, it will take longer for farmers to adopt new conservation practices to protect ESA species.”
Despite the challenges ahead, connecting the farmers, researchers, and federal regulators for discussions during the tour was a huge benefit from the event, says Hilary Sandler, Ph.D., WSSA president. “The tour resulted in great individual and group interactions,” she says. “As a result, each participant came away with much greater insight into how we must all work together to both profitably provide food for the world and protect the environment for future generations.”
Independent crop consultants advise farmers in areas such as agronomics, integrated pest management, on-farm research trials and endangered species protection and recovery, and they do so independent of sales. Both WSSA and NAICC work to implement scientific and technological advances to enhance environmental sustainability and profitability on farms across the United States.
To learn more about WSSA and its Endangered Species work, visit: https://wssa.net/endangered-species/. To learn more about WSSA’s work on weeds and herbicide resistance management, visit: https://wssa.net/weed/wssa-fact-sheets/. For more information about NAICC, visit https://naicc.org/.
About the Weed Science Society of America
The Weed Science Society of America is a nonprofit scientific society, founded in 1956 to encourage and facilitate the development of knowledge concerning weeds and their impact on the environment. The Society promotes research, education and extension outreach activities related to weeds, provides science-based information to the public and policy makers, fosters awareness of weeds and their impact on managed and natural ecosystems, and strengthens cooperation among weed science organizations across the nation and around the world. For more information, visit www.wssa.net.
SOURCE Weed Science Society of America
