Capital Press
Published on March 21, 2016 11:38AM
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Pale cyst nematode: Globodera pallida. Photo courtesy USDA
Pale cyst nematodes infect a potato plant. A federal judge has refused the USDA’s request to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Idaho potato farmers against restrictions related to the pale cyst nematode |
A federal judge has refused the USDA’s request to dismiss a lawsuit brought by Idaho potato farmers against restrictions related to the pale cyst nematode.
The U.S. wasn’t known to harbor the nematode, which can reduce potato yields by up to 80 percent, until the pest was first discovered in eastern Idaho in 2006.
To prevent the nematode’s spread, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service enacted quarantine regulations that affect roughly 175 square miles in Idaho’s Bonneville and Bingham counties.
Farmers are prohibited from selling potatoes and other crops that risk carrying the pest in interstate commerce unless they comply with APHIS rules for infested fields and those at risk of infestation.
Growers affected by the restrictions have claimed the testing requirements and other procedures are excessive and go further than in other countries where the nematode is found.
A lawsuit filed last year by 13 farms accuses APHIS of violating administrative law by imposing the regulations in an “arbitrary and capricious” manner and failing to follow public notice-and-comment requirements, among other allegations.
“APHIS’s ad hoc and ever-changing protocols have put, and will continue to put, fields owned or farmed by plaintiffs into a circuitous and undefined state of regulation for an undefined period of time,” the complaint said.
Attorneys for USDA filed a motion asking U.S. District Judge Edward Lodge to dismiss the lawsuit on jurisdictional grounds because the growers lack the legal standing to challenge the regulations in federal court.
Lodge has rejected that argument, finding that the farmers have plausibly claimed they’ve sustained injuries from the USDA’s actions that can be rectified in federal court.
The judge also held the plaintiffs were “sufficiently specific” in their allegations that APHIS acted improperly in adopting and implementing its protocols for controlling the nematode.
However, claims against the Idaho State Department of Agriculture and its director, Celia Gould, were thrown out by Lodge because they’re based on alleged state law violations that can’t be tried in federal court.
The judge nonetheless dismissed those claims without prejudice, leaving open the possibility of a lawsuit against ISDA and Gould in state court.
By KEITH RIDLER
March 22, 2016
Associated Press
BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A federal judge has denied a request by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to dismiss a lawsuit by eastern Idaho potato growers seeking to end a quarantine after the discovery of a microscopic pest that caused some countries to initially ban Idaho spuds.
The Agriculture Department argued that the Idaho farmers didn't have standing under federal laws to bring the lawsuit and that the lawsuit wasn't specific enough. But U.S. District Court Judge Edward J. Lodge in a 22-page ruling earlier this month rejected both of those arguments.
William Myers, an attorney with Holland & Hart representing about a dozen potato growers, said his clients are pleased to move ahead to argue "where we think there are flaws in the agency decision making."
The Agriculture Department didn't respond to an inquiry from The Associated Press on Tuesday.
Lodge in his ruling dismissed Idaho officials from the lawsuit, noting state court was the proper venue concerning potential violations of state law. Myers said they were still analyzing whether to file a lawsuit in state court against Idaho officials.
The Idaho attorney general's office declined to comment Tuesday on the federal court ruling.
The next step in the process, Myers said, is for the Agriculture Department to respond by early April to the initial lawsuit.
The lawsuit filed last year cited the 10th Amendment concerning state's rights in arguing that the federal government is illegally imposing regulations in Idaho through the Agriculture Department's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services.
The group also said authorities failed to follow federal environmental laws in imposing actions without proper study, such as an Environmental Impact Statement.
The discovery of the pale cyst nematode in Bingham and Bonneville counties in 2006 was the first detection of the pest in the United States, and authorities have been trying to eradicate it ever since. The plan includes quarantine and treatment of infected fields as well as special regulations for some associated fields.
The worms feed at the roots of potato plants and can reduce crop production by 80 percent. Officials say the pest is not harmful to humans.
Federal and state officials say the pale cyst nematode has infested just under 3,000 acres, with the total area under regulation about 7,700 acres.
That's a tiny fraction of the land growing potatoes in Idaho — about 324,000 acres in 2015, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. The agency says Idaho led the nation in 2015 by producing 13 billion pounds of potatoes, about 30 percent of the nation's potato crop, with an estimated value of $900 million.
But fields infected with the pale cyst nematode are out of the potato growing business.
"Anytime there's a quarantine on a crop it has an adverse economic impact on the farmer that owns the quarantined field," Myers said.
Specifically, the lawsuit deals with the process of how the quarantine was put in place in Idaho. If it's successful in lifting the quarantine, the pale cyst nematode would still be classified by in the U.S. and some 30 countries as a pest requiring quarantine. It's not clear how other states or countries would react if the lawsuit succeeds. Japan, for example, still refuses to import Idaho potatoes after the initial discovery.
The Idaho attorney general's office declined to comment Tuesday on the federal court ruling.
The next step in the process, Myers said, is for the Agriculture Department to respond by early April to the initial lawsuit.
The lawsuit filed last year cited the 10th Amendment concerning state's rights in arguing that the federal government is illegally imposing regulations in Idaho through the Agriculture Department's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services.
The group also said authorities failed to follow federal environmental laws in imposing actions without proper study, such as an Environmental Impact Statement.
The discovery of the pale cyst nematode in Bingham and Bonneville counties in 2006 was the first detection of the pest in the United States, and authorities have been trying to eradicate it ever since. The plan includes quarantine and treatment of infected fields as well as special regulations for some associated fields.
The worms feed at the roots of potato plants and can reduce crop production by 80 percent. Officials say the pest is not harmful to humans.
Federal and state officials say the pale cyst nematode has infested just under 3,000 acres, with the total area under regulation about 7,700 acres.
That's a tiny fraction of the land growing potatoes in Idaho — about 324,000 acres in 2015, according to the USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service. The agency says Idaho led the nation in 2015 by producing 13 billion pounds of potatoes, about 30 percent of the nation's potato crop, with an estimated value of $900 million.
But fields infected with the pale cyst nematode are out of the potato growing business.
"Anytime there's a quarantine on a crop it has an adverse economic impact on the farmer that owns the quarantined field," Myers said.
Specifically, the lawsuit deals with the process of how the quarantine was put in place in Idaho. If it's successful in lifting the quarantine, the pale cyst nematode would still be classified by in the U.S. and some 30 countries as a pest requiring quarantine. It's not clear how other states or countries would react if the lawsuit succeeds. Japan, for example, still refuses to import Idaho potatoes after the initial discovery.