North Carolina Special Local Need (SLN) Registrations

Section 24(c) of FIFRA, the federal pesticide law, specifies that a state may provide registration for additional uses of federally registered pesticides for distribution and use within the state to meet a special local need. "Special Local Need" is defined as "... an existing or imminent pest problem within a state for which the state lead agency, based upon satisfactory supporting information, has determined that an appropriate federally registered pesticide is not sufficiently available."

(A) "existing or imminent pest problem" means a problem which already exists or is likely to exist.

(B) "based upon satisfactory information an appropriate federally registered pesticide is not sufficiently available" means the state can document that a Special Local Need registration is needed because:

        (a) a federally registered product is not available in the state for the desired site(s) to adequately control the target pest(s), or

        (b) a federally registered product cannot be applied without causing unacceptable risk to humans and/or the environment, or

        (c) the product being requested is necessary to maintain an IPM, resistance management or minor use pest control program, or

       (d) a federally registered product could be replaced by a formulation that poses less risk to humans and/or the environment.

In North Carolina, supporting information may be furnished by the NCSU Cooperative Extension Service, commodity group and/or the pesticide registrant and is subject to verification through our internal review process. Pesticide Section personnel provide an initial review the request and, based on the information provided, a preliminary decision is made as to whether the request meets the requirements necessary to qualify for a SLN registration. If the application package seems to qualify for a SLN registration, the Pesticide Minor Use Registration Committee (PMURC) is asked to review it. PMURC is an advisory committee comprised of various North Carolina State University faculty and extension specialists. These individuals have expertise in several areas including entomology, pathology, zoology, toxicology, residue chemistry and weed science. They further review the application package and make a recommendation to the Pesticide Section as to whether the requested SLN registration is valid. If the Pesticide Section determines that the SLN registration is needed, the requested use of the pesticide will be registered in North Carolina. Special Local Need labeling must be in possession of the user when the pesticide is used to address the Special Local Need conditions.

The following list is provided for reference only and is subject to change at any time. If you have questions about a specific North Carolina 24(c) registration, please contact Lee Davis