Following our success in prompting Maine’s largest blueberry grower, Cherryfield Foods, to eliminate aerial pesticide spraying, four environmental groups represented by NELC focused on Maine’s second-largest blueberry grower, Jasper Wyman & Son. In March of 2005, we served a 60-day Notice of Intent to Sue that described how Wyman’s aerial pesticide spraying violated the Clean Water Act by discharging toxic chemicals into Maine’s streams and rivers, including rivers inhabited by endangered Atlantic salmon.
Within a month of receipt of our letter, Wyman followed Cherryfield’s example and announced the abrupt end to its aerial pesticide spraying, avoiding further litigation. Wyman transitioned to targeted ground pesticide application for its 7,000 acres of blueberry fields, significantly decreasing its environmental impact on surrounding Maine coastal habitats.
Following on the heels of our successful litigation against the aquaculture industry, this case represents another innovative use of the Clean Water Act to protect an endangered species – Maine’s Atlantic salmon.