M-44 “cyanide bombs” are indiscriminate killers, subjecting anyone who pulls on the baited devices—whether that’s a child, a family dog, or an endangered species—to a deadly, poisonous spray. That didn’t stop the Environmental Protection Agency from refusing to ban the bombs this week.
The EPA’s decision not to ban cyanide bombs came in response to a 2017 petition from Guardians and the Center for Biological Diversity. Several other conservation groups also signed the petition.
M-44s are used to kill coyotes, foxes, and wild dogs, purportedly to address conflicts with livestock. The devices spray deadly sodium cyanide into the mouths of carnivores lured by smelly bait. In 2017, M-44s temporarily blinded a child and killed three family dogs in two separate incidents in Idaho and Wyoming, leading the state of Idaho to issue a moratorium on M-44 use on public lands.
Read the press release.
