Farmers laced corn with toxic pesticide to kill federally protected birds, feds say
Two Pennsylvania men were found guilty of using corn laced with a highly toxic pesticide to kill migratory birds, officials said
Farm operator Robert Yost, 52, of New Galilee, and his employee Jacob Reese, 27, of Enon Valley, were found guilty of three counts related to the unlawful killing of migratory birds, according to a Jan. 26 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania.
McClatchy News reached out to the defense attorneys representing the men on Jan. 29 for comment but did not receive an immediate response.
In 2020, Yost instructed Reese to spread whole kernel corn coated in the pesticide carbofuran around a field he leased for soybean production, the release said.
Carbofuran is “very highly toxic to birds,” according to the Environmental Protection Agency. In 2009, the EPA concluded that carbofuran’s risks to consumers, workers who handled it and the environment made it unacceptable for all uses.
“All products containing carbofuran generally cause unreasonable adverse effects on humans and the environment and do not meet safety standards,” according to the EPA.
“The tainted corn attracted protected migratory birds that were killed within a short distance of where they ingested the corn,” prosecutors said.
Yost and Reese also took steps to conceal their actions by destroying the feedbag that held the laced corn, court documents show.
The men were responsible for killing approximately 17 Canada geese, 10 red-winged blackbirds and one mallard duck, officials said. The birds are federally protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.
The laced corn was spread around areas where children and domesticated animals were often present, posing a risk to those populations as well, court records show.
Sentencing hearings for Yost and Reese are scheduled for May 29. They each face up to 13 months in prison and a $31,000 fine.
New Galilee is 45 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.
This story was originally published January 29, 2024 at 4:56 PM with the headline "Farmers laced corn with toxic pesticide to kill federally protected birds, feds say."
