A troubling study conducted by researchers at the University of California, Davis has found that Central Valley residents routinely breathe in a combination of harmful pesticides. The “toxic soup” of chemicals, in the words of one expert, includes chlorpyrifos, which was banned by the state four years ago because of its harmful effects on child brain development.
For the study, 31 adults and 11 school-aged participants in the San Joaquin Valley were given backpacks with air collection tubes to wear throughout the day. Seven of the adults and one of the children returned detectable pesticide levels. In addition to chlorpyrifos, four other pesticides were detected: 1,3-dichloropropene, pyrimethanil, burprofezin and penthiopyrad.
“This study shows that individuals in agricultural regions of the San Joaquin Valley of California continue to be exposed to pesticides,” the researchers concluded. “This study suggests that we need to expand which pesticides we are measuring since personal exposure was observed for compounds not regularly measured in routine monitoring programs. Additionally, these compounds should undergo additional toxicity testing as the existing literature does show some signs of toxicity. The California Department of Pesticide Regulation has implemented policies to reduce pesticide exposures and to promote Integrated Pest Management, a method that supports reduced pesticide use through alternative pest management strategies.”
Read the study here, with further analysis from the Los Angeles Times.