Dozens of farm workers ask Monterey County Board of Supervisors to back statewide ban of methyl iodide

 
Salinas, CA –  United Farm Workers members and supporters, including strawberry worker Miriam Garcia, will ask the Monterey County Board of Supervisors to pass a resolution urging Gov. Jerry Brown to ban the toxic soil fumigant methyl iodide at a public hearing Tuesday from 10:30 to 11:30 a.m. at the Monterey County Government Center, 168 W. Alisal, 1st Floor, in Salinas.

Garcia, whose 6-year-old son was born with birth defects and is permanently disabled, believes her son’s health problems were caused by her exposure to pesticides during her pregnancy while she worked in area strawberry fields.

"It has been proven that this pesticide causes health problems such as cancer and birth defects," said UFW Vice President Efren Barajas. "It is very unfortunate that profits are winning over health concerns and science, but farm worker lives are worth more."

Last week Gov. Brown appointed Brian Leahy as the new director of California’s Department of Pesticide Regulation. This puts California in a position to reverse the decision by former Gov. Schwarzenegger administration to permit the use of methyl iodide. More than 85 percent of the country’s strawberries are grown in California.

Methyl iodide is a known carcinogen that can cause spontaneous miscarriages and contaminate groundwater. Injecting it as a gas into the soil presents unacceptable risks to farm workers, nearby rural communities, pregnant women and children.

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