Tebuthiuron

Tebuthiuron is a nonselective broad spectrum herbicide of the urea class. It is used to control weeds, woody and herbaceous plants, and sugar cane. It is absorbed by the roots and transported to the leaves, where it inhibits photosynthesis. The ingredient was discovered by Air Products and Chemicals, but was registered by Elanco in the United States in 1974, and later sold to Dow AgroSciences.

Environmental Impacts
The Environmental Protection Agency considers tebuthiuron to have a great potential for groundwater contamination, due to its high water solubility, low adsorption to soil particles, and high persistence in soil (its soil half-life is 360 days).

In Europe, tebuthiuron has been banned since November 2002.

Illegal Use
In 2010, tebuthiuron in the form of Dow AgroSciences Spike 80DF was deliberately used in an act of vandalism to poison the live oak trees at Toomer's Corner on the Auburn University campus following the 2010 Iron Bowl. The lone perpetrator, a University of Alabama fan, was charged with first-degree criminal mischief and was placed in jail on a $50,000 bond. Remediation of the incident required removal of about 1,780 tons of contaminated material. In 2021, Arthur and Amelia Bond, wealthy summer residents of Camden, Maine poisoned their neighbor's oak trees with tebuthiuron in order to obtain a better view of Camden Harbor. They paid over $200 thousand in fines to address illegal pesticide use and environmental contamination, and $1.5 million to settle with their neighbor.