Kern ‘Hooked on Poison,' report on pesticide use finds

Filed: 05/03/2000

By CHIP POWER
Californian staff writer
e-mail: ppower@bakersfield.com

An activist group fanned the pesticide debate Wednesday,
contending in a new report that California's use of farm
chemicals is spiraling out of control and that the
development of alternatives is generating little headway.

The report, spearheaded by San Francisco-based
Pesticide Action Network, compiled pesticide usage
reports in California for a two-year period. It concluded
the use of carcinogens and other potentially harmful
chemicals needlessly jeopardizes human health and has
perpetuated a chemical treadmill that agribusiness cannot
escape.

The contention was challenged by many farmers and the
state Department of Pesticide Regulation, who said the
report, "Hooked on Poison," had a needlessly
melodramatic title and ignored real progress in
developing new strategies in combatting pests in the
nation's most diversified farm economy.

Kern County ranked No. 2 in volume of pesticides applied
between 1991 and 1998, the report said. Significant to Joe
Morales of the Delano-based Center on Race Poverty and
the Environment was Kern's No. 1 ranking in the number
of "bad actor" compounds applied.

"This is something we should be concerned about," said
Morales, who made brief remarks at the Kern County
Library, along with Nick Parker from Californians for
Pesticide Reform.

"We should look closely at what is being used ... and push
for farming that makes more economic and ecological
sense," Morales said.

The group's phrase "bad actors" refers to pesticides that
are acute poisons, known or suspected carcinogens,
neurotoxins, reproductive or developmental toxicants, or
are known to contaminate groundwater.

Some 8.4 million pounds of these compounds were
applied in Kern in 1998, PAN said, or the equivalent of
about 13 pounds for each of the county's 648,000
residents.

The group recommended phasing out the "bad actors,"
banning soil fumigants, targeting high chemical-use crops
such as strawberries for mandatory pesticide reductions
and boosting research funds to develop alternatives.

The report noted:

"In an era of much progress in protecting air and water
from industrial emissions and cleaning up industrial
hazardous waste sites, reported pesticide use in California
continues to increase at a rate of about seven million
pounds of active ingredients a year, a 40 percent increase
between 1991 and 1998."

The San Joaquin Valley, a salad and nut bowl for the rest
of the nation, uses the most pesticides, with Fresno (No.
1) and Kern far outpacing other counties.

Department of Pesticide Regulation spokesman Glenn
Brank didn't quarrel so much with the data, but with the
PAN interpretation.

"They think the best way to go is to ban pesticides," said
Brank. "Our philosophy is to reduce the negative impacts
of pesticides, and there is a big difference there."

He said the state has awarded $5 million in grants for
reduced-risk pest management research in the last five
years. The agency now has an annual budget of about $55
million.

Brank said the grants are often matched by industry groups
that are looking for less expensive, easier-to-use and more
environmentally friendly crop-production tools.

"Their report gives little credit to substantial efforts by us
and others to reduce negative impacts of pesticide use,"
Brank said.

As examples, Brank cited: strawberry growers, who are
seeking alternatives to a fumigant called methyl bromide,
an ozone depleter scheduled to be phased out by 2005;
poultry owners, who have been reducing the use of
formaldehyde in their barn-cleansing operations; almond
growers, who are trying to use natural pest enemies,
low-risk biological pesticides and bug mating disruption
techniques to protect their crops; and wine grape growers,
who are using pesticides only as a tool of the last resort.

Likewise, Arvin apple grower Pete Pankey had concerns
with PAN's interpretation of the data.

"They are all just naysayers," he said. "If all these things
are so dangerous, how come everyone is living longer?''

He also pointed out that most nutritionists agree that one of
the best ways to protect personal health is to eat a diet
rich in fruits and vegetables, exactly the kind of crops that
often are grown with an array of pesticides to fend off
bugs and molds.

"But believe me," he added. "Using pesticides is not
something we enjoy using. The cost can be outrageous."