Californians Call on Governor Brown to Ban Cancer-Causing Pesticide

More than 16,000 people have called and emailed California Governor Jerry Brown in the last 24 hours urging him to immediately revoke the approval of the carcinogenic pesticide methyl iodide. Scientists say the safety of California’s food, farmworkers, and residents is at stake.

Three farms have already started fumigating their fields with one of the most toxic chemicals on earth. With peak fumigation season mere weeks away, environmental organizations like Pesticide Action Network of North America (PANNA) are worried that other farmers will follow suit. It's likely that more farmers will start using this dangerous pesticide unless Governor Brown takes action immediately.

"We are at a critical point,” said Kathryn Gilje, Executive Director of PANNA. “Fumigation season is nearly upon us, and though there have just been a handful of methyl iodide applications so far, there could be many more in the next 30 days unless Brown takes action now."

PANNA created an online petition on Change.org asking Gov. Brown to reverse the approval of methyl iodide before it is too late. The campaign asks the governor to immediately ban the use of methyl iodide in the state and to appoint a director of the Department of Pesticide Regulation who will allow science rather than corporate interests to guide policy decisions on pesticides.

The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) approved the use of methyl iodide back in 2007, but the pesticide wasn’t green lighted in California until six months ago, in an 11th-hour decision by the Schwarzenegger administration. The Department of Pesticide Regulation’s own scientific review panel advised against the approval of methyl iodide, citing its links to cancer, late-term miscarriages, neurological problems, and other health issues. John Froines, a leading toxicologist at UCLA, referred to methyl iodide as “one of the most toxic chemicals on earth.”

“Exposure to methyl iodide has been associated with cancers, late-term miscarriages, thyroid and kidney disease, nausea, slurred speech, and skin burns, among other health problems,” said Sarah Parsons, Change.org’s Sustainable Food Editor. “Letting farm owners fumigate their fields with methyl iodide puts farmworkers’ and nearby residents’ lives in jeopardy.”

Though methyl iodide was approved for use in California in December of 2010, no farmers actually started using the carcinogen until May of 2011. Now, with peak fumigation season just weeks away, other farmers—especially strawberry farmers—may start using the pesticide. California produces more than half of America’s fruits, a quarter of its vegetables, and almost 90 percent of its strawberries.

In March, Gov. Brown promised to “take a fresh look” at methyl iodide’s approval. PANNA’s campaign on Change.org asks the governor to honor that promise before more farmers start using the the carcinogenic pesticide.

If you would like to join PANNA in pushing Gov. Brown to ban methyl iodide, sign the non-profit's petition here.

Photo credit: rtilden via Flickr