Strawberry pesticide targeted by environmentalists, farmworkers

A coalition of environmental and farmworker groups is urging California's Gov.-elect Jerry Brown to cancel the imminent approval of a controversial agricultural pesticide after he takes office, citing evidence that it is linked to cancer.

The San-Francisco-based Californians for Pesticide Reform, an umbrella group of 185 organizations, plans to ask Brown to direct officials not to approve methyl iodide as part of a broader set of agricultural recommendations the group will present to the incoming administration next week.

California's Department of Pesticide Regulation tentatively approved methyl iodide's use in April, despite concerns by a scientific advisory panel that it could poison air and water. The pesticide, which is used as a fumigant,  is included on California's official list of cancer-causing chemicals.

But regulators insist the chemical can be used safely if strict guidelines are followed. Tests have found no traces of the carcinogen in fruit from treated soil. Strawberries are among the fruits most heavily treated with pesticides in general, according to the Environmental Working Group, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit.

Department spokeswoman Lea Brooks said the agency plans to make a final decision on methyl iodide by the end of this year — before Brown's Jan. 3 swearing-in as governor.

Paul Towers, a spokesman for coalition member Pesticide Watch, said the groups hoped a decision wouldn't be made in the final days of the current administration. “It wouldn't be given due process unless the new administration has time to review it,” he said.

Brown spokesman Clifford Sterling did not return a phone message seeking comment.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency affirmed methyl iodide for use in most of the country in 2007, but California regulators opted to put it through their own registration process. California's $1.6-billion strawberry industry would probably be the main user of methyl iodide, which is promoted as a substitute for methyl bromide, a chemical being phased out under an international treaty because it depletes the Earth's protective ozone layer.

Last August, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced plans to review the toxicity of methyl iodide, following on an independent California analysis of the chemical by several renowned experts released earlier this year.

California Sen. Diane Feinstein has also asked federal officials to reconsider the toxicity of the chemical and its approval for use. Methyl iodide's current users include growers of tomatoes, peppers, eggplants and other crops in Florida and other southeastern states.

Other recommendations in the environmental groups' policy brief include encouraging more organic agricultural practices and improving enforcement of pesticide laws. The coalition's other members include the Pesticide Action Network North America, the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation and the Center on Race, Poverty and the Environment.

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-- Margot Roosevelt, with Jacob Adelman /AP

Photo: An Oxnard resident picks strawberries at that city's Cambry Farms. Credit: Los Angeles Times

Comments

[Franklin]

@ Robert Dolezal

"Already registered in 47 other states, it has been used to treat 16,000 acres of cropland for over 3 years without a single health incident report."

Wow, that averages out to to 113 acres/state/year! And double wow, 3 total years of most likely much less intensive uses on non-strawberry crops.

CA strawberries > 30,000 acres/year concentrated in few locales like Watsonville, Salinas, Santa Maria and Oxnard. The true safety experiment will be borne by these communities.

[Green Directory]

these pesticides are the reason why i am very cautious when purchasing fruits. We need to stop this!

[save the deserts!]

"But regulators insist the chemical can be used safely if strict guidelines are followed..."

Hilarious. Since when has industry and Big Agra followed ANY guidelines, much less "strict ones?" Why do we keep pretending like they are all good citizens, working for the benefit of our society while they poison us, cheat us and refuse to pay taxes?

STOP LETTING INDUSTRY POISON US FOR PROFITS.

Easy and profitable to grow strawberries organically. Time to start.

[Christi Neumann]

I just hope that when and if methyl iodide is used the utmost care will be taken, and that people will be protected and educated. Wondering about the long term effects is a scary thing.

#
State sends warning to state research center about pesticides ...
Neumann worked with pesticides, including the very toxic methyl iodide, often without a mask or respirator, said his wife, Christi. Neumann wasn’t properly trained about ...
www.bradenton.com/2009/01/27/1181783/state-sends-warning... - Cached

#
Methyl Iodide - PAN logo
Jun 29, 2010 ... Methyl iodide, a chemical used to induce cancer in the lab, is being considered for use in California agriculture. ...
www.panna.org/issues/related-umbrella.../cancer-free-strawberries - Cached
#

[HopeforAmerica]

And that's Why I Buy O r g a n i c !

[HopeforAmerica]

And that's Why I Buy O r g a n i c !

[Get Planted]

The best we can do to solve this problem is stop buying strawberries and grow our own.

[MalikTous]

In general, if pesticide treatments cause need for moon-suits when harvesting produce, it's time to abandon that chemical and use something safer.

Planting tobacco plants at the perimeter of a crop field rather than as a crop itself, using nicotine extract in insecticidal soap, and planting other plants like garlic and onion in appropriate locations are examples of using natural pest controls. While synthetic nicotinoids are dangerous, the natural extract breaks down after a couple of weeks and lets predatory insects return to the field and feed on remaining unwanted pests. Field workers aren't encumbered with excessive protective gear and can pick a low-toxicity natural food product rather than something else that has to be processed before it can be eaten. The idea is not just to choose the least hazardous of an array of toxic pesticides; we should be weaning ourselves off these long term poisons and resume using the millions-of-years tested natural ecology.

[s sureck]

This pesticide should be banned from use in
California, harmful to all that come in contact with it. FLORIDA has a huge Strawberry crop, and I am wondering now if this would be used here as well - it shouldn't be used anywhere SO LONG as it shows to be a cancer causing pesticide.
Thank you for bringing this to the public attention.
AnimalActionUSA

[cheri]

Now if only the other states would start following California's example of avoiding pesticies. Kudos to California! Wish I lived there :)

[Robert Dolezal]

These oft-repeated false claims sound like tin to my ears. The US-EPA gave methyl iodide its Ozone Protection Award following the "most comprehensive review" in its history of an agricultural registration. California's Department of Pesticide Registration's director Mary-Ann Warmerdam echoed those thoughts when she said, "After extensive reviews, we have determined idomethane can be used safely."

Already registered in 47 other states, it has been used to treat 16,000 acres of cropland for over 3 years without a single health incident report.

Using methyl iodide will directly reduce the amount of ozone-depleting methyl bromide applied to agricultural acreage, and it has the side benefit of killing pathogens, weed seeds, and pests in infected and infested soil, so that acreage will have less pesticides and herbicides applied to it when the crops are planted and grow.

[Fred L. Curry]

What are these idiots talking about. Methyl Iodide is better than Methyl Bromide. So we don't move to safer chemicals and instead leave the field workers at a higher risk? Sheesh.

[Jim Sims]

Another hit piece. What has happened to balanced reporting? I am also an organic chemist and believe that this chemical can be used safely.

Organic farming will just not supply enough food.

Take a look at the local farmers markets where so-called organic produce is being found to be bogus. The markets are poorly regulated.

[Joe Mc]

I am an organic chemist and treat methyl iodide with great caution as it is a rather dangerous chemical. To have this stuff being carted around by the bucketload and handled by folks with a few weeks training (if that) is pretty scary.

[Newport]

Autism? Cleft palates? Other genetic abnormalities on the rise? I wonder what's causing it?