Monthly for up to 5 Years beginning Summer 2008: Pheromone-based pesticides in microscopic plastic capsules will be sprayed from low-flying planes over our communities. Conducted by the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) under mandate by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) which classifies LBAM as a quarantinable pest that must be eradicated.
Not safe:
The pesticide sprayed last fall contains ingredients that are carcinogens, mutagens and other toxic chemicals in microcapsules that are small enough to reach deep lung tissue. More than 600 reports of illness after spraying in 2007 include respiratory distress, nausea, skin rashes and vomiting. Especially at risk are children, the elderly, pregnant women, those with chronic disease, the homeless and those who work outdoors.
Other ingredients are toxic to aquatic species. Surfactants in the spray might have contributed to red tide and deaths of hundreds of waterfowl.
Not effective:
Experts say the moth is impossible to eradicate and best controlled by natural predators that are plentiful in California: birds, spiders, wasps, flies, beetles, lacewings, and earwigs.
Not necessary: Twice confirmed in court: the moth has zero impact on CA agriculture or ecosystems. LBAM is a paper pest. Trade issues, not crop damage, are causing quarantines that lead to economic losses for farmers.
Not right: Millions of people are being exposed to pesticides against their will. The petition on StopTHeSpray.ORG is calling for informed consent as a condition for pesticide spraying. We must honor the need for "due respect to the preciousness of human life and the right of individuals to determine what is done to their own bodies." Calif. Health and Safety Code S. 24,171.
Not over yet: Though Governor Schwarzenegger issued a delay of the continuation of the spraying, he also insists that spraying is safe and necessary to avoid "…a devastating impact on our state's environment and economy." [Bakersfield Californian, 4/24/08].
In two separate decisions, Superior court judges in Santa Cruz and Monterey County recently ruled that spraying there could not continue until after an Environmental Impact Report has been completed. CDFA plans to seek an appeal.
