PETITION TO THE NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION TO REGULATE SECOND GENERATION ANTICOAGULANT RODENTICIDES AS RESTRICTED USE PESTICIDES

A coalition of conservation organizations petitioned the New York Department of Environmental Conservation to ban second generation anticoagulant rodenticides (SGARs), arguing that these chemicals bioaccumulate in the environment and cause widespread mortality among non-target wildlife, pets, and children. The petitioners provide evidence of over 225 lethal poisoning incidents across 31 wildlife species in New York and highlight the disproportionate impact of rodenticide exposure on minority and disadvantaged communities in New York City. The petition asserts that SGARs violate state and federal wildlife protection laws, including the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, and argues that safer, effective alternatives such as first-generation anticoagulants, non-anticoagulant chemicals, and mechanical trapping are available.

• Second generation anticoagulant rodenticides (SGARs), including brodifacoum, bromadiolone, difethialone, and difenacoum, are single-dose toxins that bioaccumulate in the liver with half-lives ranging from four months to a year.
• In New York, SGARs have caused or contributed to the deaths of at least 225 non-target animals across 31 different wildlife species between 1989 and 2013.
• Raptors in New York are highly susceptible to SGARs; a DEC study from 1998 to 2001 found that 49% of raptor necropsies showed detectable anticoagulant rodenticides, with brodifacoum present in 84% of those cases.
• Rodenticide exposure in New York City disproportionately affects minority and disadvantaged children; between 2000 and 2010, 79% of rodenticide exposures in NYC were to children under six, and of those hospitalized, 57% were African American, 26% were Latino, and 62% were Medicaid enrollees.
• SGARs pose a significant risk of secondary poisoning to predators; the EPA found that a 1000-gram bird would need to consume only two brodifacoum-poisoned mice to reach a lethal dose, compared to 1200 diphacinone-poisoned mice.
• The use of SGARs in New York is argued to violate the federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, as well as the New York Endangered Species Act, due to the 'take' of protected species.
• Sub-lethal exposure to SGARs can cause physiological damage, including heart damage, liver damage, osteoporosis, and reduced lambing rates or embryo mortality in sheep.
• The petitioners identify several viable alternatives to SGARs, including habitat modification (sanitation, exclusion, and proofing), mechanical trapping (snap, electronic, and live traps), non-anticoagulant chemicals (bromethalin, zinc phosphide, and cholecalciferol), and first-generation anticoagulant rodenticides (warfarin, diphacinone, and chlorophacinone).

APA

Earthjustice (2014). PETITION TO THE NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION TO REGULATE SECOND GENERATION ANTICOAGULANT RODENTICIDES AS RESTRICTED USE PESTICIDES. https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2014-7-28_ny_sgar_petition.pdf

Chicago

Earthjustice. PETITION TO THE NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION TO REGULATE SECOND GENERATION ANTICOAGULANT RODENTICIDES AS RESTRICTED USE PESTICIDES. 2014. https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2014-7-28_ny_sgar_petition.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Earthjustice |title=PETITION TO THE NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION TO REGULATE SECOND GENERATION ANTICOAGULANT RODENTICIDES AS RESTRICTED USE PESTICIDES |date=28 July 2014 |url=https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2014-7-28_ny_sgar_petition.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{earthjustice2014petition, author = {{Earthjustice}}, title = {{PETITION TO THE NEW YORK DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION TO REGULATE SECOND GENERATION ANTICOAGULANT RODENTICIDES AS RESTRICTED USE PESTICIDES}}, institution = {Earthjustice}, year = {2014}, month = jul, url = {https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/2014-7-28_ny_sgar_petition.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }