21 - Mosquito control and the Endangered Species Act: a National Marine Fisheries Service overview of addressing risks to aquatic species

Abstract: A key requirement of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) is that a federal agency consult with the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) when any action they take might affect an ESA-listed species managed by NMFS to insure that Federal actions are not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of listed species. The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) authorization of pesticide-containing products for the control of mosquitos is an action which has led to ESA-consultations with NMFS. This presentation will provide an overview of NMFS’ approach to applying the ESA to address the risks posed to listed species by authorized uses of mosquito control products. The approach involves assessing the extent and magnitude of exposures to pesticides in order to assess the potential effects to listed species. In the case of mosquito control, this poses a challenge since use is not restricted to relatively defined sites (e.g. field of corn), but can occur over a wide area. Therefore, as part of ESA-consultations, NMFS has identified a need to better understand the extent of mosquito control use in order to manage the risk to ESA-listed aquatic species. NMFS is working with other agencies and organizations to develop the means to accomplish this goal.