No to Methyl Iodide at Watsonville City Council

Pass widely!!!!

Tell the Watsonville City Council NO TO METHYL IODIDE!!!!

If you cannot attend the meeting Councilperson contacts are the end of this message. PLEASE EMAIL OR CALL THEM BY TUESDAY AT NOON!
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FARMERS, FARMWORKERS, PARENTS, STUDENTS, KIDS, PETS, WILDLIFE!

Help us PREVENT the use of methyl iodide in our communities!

Convince the Watsonville City Council to adopt a resolution expressing our concerns about the potential use of this very dangerous chemical in agriculture. After the meeting, we will send the resolution to the governor of the State of California, The California Department of Pesticide Regulation and the California Environmental Protection Agency.

Who: You!
What: Join us at the Watsonville City Council Meeting
When: Tuesday November 30th at 4 PM, SHARP! (Don't Be Late!)
Where: Watsonville Civic Plaza, 275 Main St., Watsonville, CA
City Council Room, 6th Floor
Why: To express your concerns and show your support of this cause with your presence

How: Come to the meeting! Bring signs! Bring your family and friends!

Facts About Methyl Iodide and Its Probable Effects on Our Communities

Methyl Iodide is a very dangerous pesticide (fumigant), and the state of California is considering approving its use in agriculture.

Methyl iodide is four times more poisonous than methyl bromide: the chemical that was recently banned because it depletes the ozone. Both are used to fumigate the soil where strawberries and other crops are grown.

Medical scientists use methyl iodide to induce cancer in lab animals in order to test new drugs and treatments.

50 well respected scientists of good conscience have signed a petition to the California EPA asking that the state not approve this chemical for agricultural use.

Methyl iodide can cause very serious birth defects and also affects fetal and childhood development. It can cause miscarriages.

Scientific research has found that many of the chemical pesticides already in use cause learning disabilities in children that are exposed to these substances.

A significant number of students and their families work in and live near fields, where they are exposed to poisonous chemicals. These poisons travel into our bodies on our work clothes, and through the air we breath and water we drink. We who work and live near the fields sacrifice our health in order to improve our lives and take care of our families.

Many schools in PVUSD are close to agricultural fields. Sometimes, students have to play or walk near the fields when the ranchers are applying dangerous pesticides.

Millions of pounds of poisons are already used every year in agriculture in the Pajaro Valley. Yet we don’t know everything about what long-term effects these substances will have in the environment or for human health.

But we do know that those who will be affected the most if methyl iodide is approved are farmworkers, their children, and people who live near the fields.


District 1
Manuel Quintero Bersamin
(831) 768-3001
mbersamin [at] ci.watsonville.ca.us
Term Expires November 2012

District 2
Luis A. Alejo
Mayor
(831) 768-3002
lalejo [at] ci.watsonville.ca.us
Term Expires November 2012


District 3
Antonio Rivas
(831) 768-3003
arivas [at] ci.watsonville.ca.us
Term Expires November 2010


District 4
Kimberly Petersen
(831) 768-3004
kpetersen [at] ci.watsonville.ca.us
Term Expires November 2010


District 5
Greg Caput
(831) 768-3005
gcaput [at] ci.watsonville.ca.us
Term Expires November 2010

District 6
Emilio Martinez
(831) 768-3006
emilio.martinez [at] ci.watsonville.ca.us
Term Expires November 2012

District 7
Nancy Bilicich
Mayor Pro Tempore
(831) 768-3007
nbilicich [at] ci.watsonville.ca.us
Term Expires November 2010