California lawmakers have accepted a invoice that might assist strengthen laws round the usage of paraquat, a robust weedkiller related to Parkinson’s illness and different severe well being points.
Meeting Invoice 1963 was launched in January by Assemblymember Laura Friedman (D-Glendale), and initially sought to sundown the usage of paraquat in California starting in January 2026.
Nevertheless, the ultimate laws has been amended in order that it now would require the California Division of Pesticide Regulation to finish a reevaluation of the herbicide by Jan. 1, 2029, and decide whether or not to retain, cancel or droop its registration, or to create new restrictions. The invoice handed the Senate 23 to eight and now awaits a signature from Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Paraquat is banned in additional than 60 nations. Many environmental and advocacy teams had been hoping for an outright ban in California, however stated the invoice nonetheless marks a step ahead by fast-tracking its security evaluation — a course of that may typically take many years.
“We’re inspired by the progress being made in California setting the instance for different states to behave in the case of evaluating the protection and toxicity of chemical compounds with long run neurological and different well being implications,” learn an announcement from Julia Pitcher, director of state authorities relations for the Michael J. Fox Basis for Parkinson’s Analysis. “We strongly urge the passage of this laws and look ahead to Governor Newsom signing it into regulation quickly.”
The U.S. Environmental Safety Company describes paraquat as extremely poisonous — noting that “one sip can kill” — but California stays one of many nation’s high customers of the chemical. The state sprays tens of millions of kilos yearly on crops reminiscent of almonds, grapes and cotton.
An Environmental Working Group report printed earlier this 12 months discovered that the state’s farmworkers and low-income Latino individuals, specifically, are disproportionately uncovered to paraquat of their communities, with greater than 5.3 million kilos sprayed in Kern County alone between 2017 and 2021.
The invoice confronted opposition from a coalition of opponents together with pesticide producers, chemical trade commerce associations and agriculture commerce organizations.
By the point it wound its approach by the legislature, together with the Senate Agriculture Committee, it had misplaced a lot of its tooth, stated Invoice Allayaud, California director of presidency affairs with EWG.
“It’s nonetheless an excellent invoice, as a result of with out this, DPR most likely wouldn’t do something,” he stated. “Hopefully the governor will signal it and agree that that is on the high of the record for issues we don’t need individuals uncovered to, particularly farmworkers.”
Paraquat has been the topic of hundreds of lawsuits from individuals looking for damages associated to publicity to the product, together with individuals who say it has given them Parkinson’s illness, a neurodegenerative dysfunction that impacts motion.
The invoice’s legislative evaluation notes that not less than 10 epidemiological research have linked paraquat publicity to Parkinson’s illness, together with a 2019 meta-analysis of 13 research that discovered publicity to the herbicide was related to a 1.64-fold improve within the threat of the illness.
Different research have discovered no clear hyperlink, nevertheless, and the product’s producers proceed to reject any claims of a connection.
In an announcement, Friedman stated AB 1963 may have “very actual outcomes.”
“I’m proud of the place the invoice landed,” Friedman stated. “We by no means thought we’d get a full ban by the Legislature. However we needed to push as arduous as we may.”
She famous that the Legislature offered the Division of Pesticide Regulation with further funding this 12 months with a requirement that the company do extra reevaluations of poisonous chemical compounds.
“I’ve full confidence, that ought to AB 1963 get signed into regulation, that DPR will do an intensive reevaluation of paraquat, and both ban it outright, or place larger restrictions on its use,” Friedman stated.
Advocacy teams stay dedicated to seeing the chemical managed.
The EWG this week launched a marketing campaign with the Michael J. Fox Basis urging President Biden and the EPA to ban paraquat nationwide. The federal company may have till Jan. 17 to decide.
There may be some purpose for optimism: The EPA final month issued a uncommon emergency order to cease the usage of one other weedkiller, dachthal, that poses a major threat to fetuses.
