South Dakota-Based Entomologist Loses Appeal to USDA

BROOKINGS, S.D. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture has rejected an appeal by a federal scientist who said his research was repressed.

South Dakota-based entomologist Jonathan Lundgren filed an internal complaint against USDA in 2014, saying he'd been restricted from publishing and talking about his research on pesticides and pollinating insects.

USDA found the complaint without merit. Lundgren appealed, and that the appeal has been rejected.

Lundgren's attorney, Jeff Ruch, works for the group Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, which is suing USDA over its scientific integrity policy.

USDA says it's committed to scientific integrity and did nothing wrong.

A separate whistleblower complaint that Lundgren filed against USDA is moving forward. That complaint is to a federal whistleblower protection board.

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