Nonprofit aims to reduce & eliminate dangerous pesticides, impose buffer zone around schools

A state nonprofit that aims to reduce and eliminate the use of dangerous pesticides on agricultural fields in California plans to sue the agency tasked with regulating them.

The announcement came Tuesday during a press conference convened in Watsonville by Californians for Pesticide Reform.

Mark Weller, who oversees that organization, said the lawsuit will be filed soon.

According to that nonprofit, new rules from the state’s Department of Pesticide Regulation’s (DPR) governing the use of the pesticides 1,3-dichloropropene (1,3-D; brand name Telone) and Chloropicrin—both known carcinogens—exceed by 14 times those recommended by state toxicologists at Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment.

Yanely Martinez, an organizer with Safe Ag, Safe Schools—which co-hosted the event—said the Watsonville rally was one of several held statewide, with Oxnard, Modesto and Fresno included in the list.

“Our call is to basically phase out fumigants,” she said. “The regulation does not protect our children in the Pajaro Valley.”

The group is also calling for a one-mile buffer zone on farm fields near schools to be either pesticide free, or use organic practices.

“The ethical thing to do is to listen to the OEHHA scientists,” Martinez said.

Points out that a similar one-mile buffer was recently implemented in Imperial County.

“The reason we’re putting this press conference on, and why we’re doing what we’re doing, is for the health of the next generation, and the current generation,” she said. 

Omar Dieguez, who recently went on a 30-day hunger strike in an attempt to convince companies such as Driscoll’s to cease the use of pesticides, said he wants to bring public attention to the issue of cancer-causing fumigants.

“Driscolls owns thousands of fields,” he said. “We’re asking for 20 to 30 fields near our schools to go organic. They’re not going to lose a lot of money on 20 to 30 fields versus the thousands that they own.”

Public health nurse Erika Alfaro said that 40 countries worldwide have already banned the fumigants. 

“I am very furious,” she said. “The state is ultimately failing to protect us, and especially our children from these hazardous pesticides.”

Francisco Rodriguez, Monterey Bay Central Labor Council, said that the fumigants are more than just a public health issue.

“They’re also a work-safety issue,” he said. “These fumigants hurt the workers, they hurt the families, and if you live near one of these fields where these fumigants are applied, they hurt you.”

A 2014 study of the 15 California counties with the highest pesticide use showed an increase from 149,000 to nearly 190,000 pounds of Telone, and It grew from 161,000 pounds to 259,000 pounds of Chloropicrin. 

In a statement provided to The Pajaronian, CDPR said that the rules set by OEHHA are different from the regulatory targets set by DPR.

OEHHA guidelines regulate when a warning is needed, and can prod businesses to reduce use beyond what a regulation requires. DPR regulations, on the other hand, restrict use.

“Last year, we set new rules that protect bystanders with fumigation restrictions, and those regulations are already working: emissions fell 29 percent from 2023 to 2024. In California, 1,3-D use and emissions are decreasing: 2024 air monitoring found levels below scientific health thresholds,” the statement reads. 

In addition, DPR has partnered with OEHHA to further restrict the use of 1,3-D, which will require larger buffer zones and more evaluation of exposure risks. If approved, the new rules will take effect Jan. 1.DPR also launched SprayDays California, which alerts the community when restricted materials pesticides are scheduled to be used.