Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Environment Pesticides topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Community groups press Stanislaus County for stronger fumigant buffers; board approves outreach funding
Summary
Valley Improvement Projects and other speakers urged Stanislaus County to expand pesticide buffer zones near schools and to pursue funding for farmer transition and community education; the board approved a small outreach grant for the Ag Commissioner's 'Spray Safe' event and encouraged further outreach.
Community members and environmental‑justice advocates told the Board of Supervisors they want the county to act locally to protect children and farmworker communities from fumigant drift, citing documented drift incidents and scientific guidance they say the state has ignored.
John X. Mataka of Valley Improvement Projects argued that state protections are insufficient and urged local action. "We're advocating for a 1 mile buffer and that's supported by evidence, science, and community experience around schools," Mataka told the board. Bianca Lopez, also with Valley Improvement Projects, presented county pesticide‑use data and cited OEHHA guidance and a Department of Pesticide Regulation decision she said differed from that guidance. In the transcript Lopez cites OEHHA's safe harbor level as "0.04 parts per billion" and said the DPR proposed a limit of "0.56 parts per billion," which she characterized as far less protective.
Lopez told the board the group is asking the county agricultural commissioner to investigate expanding the buffer from one‑quarter mile to one mile near schools and to pursue funding that would help farmers transition to safer practices. She emphasized community outreach and requested more resources for getting drift‑reporting guidance into the hands of school administrators.
At the consent calendar the board considered and approved item B20, a roughly $36,000 outreach/grant item tied to a Spray Safe event and community education; Bianca Lopez described the Ag Commissioner's office as responsive and encouraged the county to seek additional grants to expand outreach. The board approved B20 unanimously.
What happens next: Advocates asked the board to direct the Ag Commissioner to study expanded buffers and to seek funding to support farmer transitions; staff and the board encouraged ongoing engagement and grant seeking to support education and reporting tools for schools and communities.
