The toxic fumigant can penetrate these communities in the LA area

From Alejandra Reyes-BellardeCalmness

This story was originally published by CalmattersS Register about their ballots.

At least six fumigation facilities in Southeast County Los Angeles use toxic pesticide, which can harm humans, but nevertheless air quality regulators have not analyzed health risks in nearby communities.

The residents of West Long Beach have been angry since January when they learned that potentially dangerous levels of methyl bromid Used by two facilities were found near a primary school – five years after the vapors were first discovered by air quality staff.

Then, on Thursday night, at a virtual community meeting, officers of the air quality management region in the south coast revealed that four more facilities located in Compton and San Pedro also use chemicals – in much larger volumes than two West Long Beach facilities.

The homes are located near the San Pedro and Compton fumigation business, but air quality employees have said they have no plans to monitor the air there.

State Health Employees have classified methyl bromida as A reproductive toxicity, Which means it can harm the development of babies exposed to the womb. In the short term, high levels can cause headaches, dizziness, nausea and difficulty breathing while exposure over a year or more It can cause serious neurological effects, such as difficulties in learning and memory.

“Every day … There was an explosion in this neighborhood and no one knew where it was coming from, because in an interview he was silent,” says Terral Golden, a longtime West Long Beach resident and a community defender. “So how do you find out what causes your illness? We have to be in a crisis regime and everyone wants to behave as everything is right.”

Methyl Bromid is used by companies to Kill harmful pests On imported fruits and vegetables that arrive through the ports of the region. The fumigant has been widely used in crops, especially strawberries for decades, but has been banned internationally for most uses in 1987 A contract for the United Nations organization which protects the earthly ozone layer. Exceptions are provided for fumming products delivered from abroad.

The two facilities of West Long Beach – Ag Fume Service and San Pedro ForkliftAlso known as SPF Logistics – they are just a few hundred feet from Elizabeth Hudson’s home and elementary school.

Daniel McCarell, a lawyer representing AG Fume, who also manages a San Pedro facility, said the company had complied with its permits and was open to change.

“We have cooperated with the agencies every step of the way to reduce any potential impact that our operations can have on … our workers and the community,” he said. “We believe that our operations are safe and that we do the best that can be done.”

Greg Augustine, the owner of Harbor Fumigation, said his business in San Pedro was allowed and meets local, state and federal requirements. He said he would cooperate with the air quality regulators if they asked for more information about his work.

“In all the processes of life, you need to balance the costs and benefits,” Augustine said. “We grow many grapes in California. This process is intended to protect these grapes from (pests) that exist in South America, but do not exist in North America and would be harmful to home agriculture.”

Motor General San Pedro has refused to answer questions from Calmatters.

The global pest management, which has fumigation facilities in Compton and a terminal island near San Pedro, did not respond to calls.

The Global Pest Management Compton Management is close to the 710 highway, with residential neighborhoods on both sides. It used 11 626 kilograms of methyl bromide in 2022, more than doubling the volumes used in West Long Beach facilities, according to West Long Beach facilities, according to West Long Beach facilities, according to West Long Beach facilities Data provided by the South Coast area At the Thursday meeting.

“We grow many grapes in California. This process is intended to protect these grapes from (pests) that exist in South America, but do not exist in North America and would be harmful to home agriculture.”

Greg Augustine, owner of Harbor Fumigation

AG Fume and Harbor Fumigation, located at the same address in San Pedro, collectively used nearly 40,000 pounds of methyl bromide in 2022, according to the data. This is seven to eight times the two businesses in West Long Beach. The facility is close to the 22nd park on the street of San Pedro and the neighborhoods in the west.

The area of ​​the southern coast provided information about the four facilities on Thursday after residents expressed fears whether more businesses were using the fumigant.

No air monitoring was carried out in the four Compton and San Pedro.

In West Long Beach, the California Air Resources Council was observing methyl bromide spikes up to 983 and 966 parts per billion in February and March 2024. At 1000 ppb, methyl bromid can cause acute health effects such as nausea and dizziness, air employees said.

The average concentration found at West Long Beach sites was 2.1 PPB in 2023 to part of 2024; Breathing for only 1 ppb per year or more can cause serious health effects as per Air Resources California Council. In March the average monthly concentrations were Third As the State Air Board began to monitor in 2023.

Air quality employees told residents of the community meeting on Thursday that the West Long Beach School was not in the area that could have health effects, although 50 homes are.

However, a monitor located from the southern coast near the elementary school in 2019, as part of a regional study of air toxicity, found that concentrations of methyl bromide of 1.14 PPB, above the threshold for chronic health effects. Still, the air area did not notify school employees of elevated levels until January this year.

In California, the permission of methyl bromide is often applied by air quality areas. But in the area of ​​Los Angeles, Air District delegates much of this responsibility of Los Angeles County Commissioner In an agreement of 1996

In response to a request for public records speaker stated that the district agency follows Guidelines for adjusting a pesticide department for his authorization process.

Maximiliano Reguis, Chief Deputy of the Agricultural Commissioner, said during the first public meeting in January that the air area did not notify the District Commissioner for Agriculture of Elevated Levels by July 2024, spokesman Michael de Los Reyes declined to answer additional questions.

In 2024, the District Commissioner imposed new conditions for permits for the two facilities of West Long Long to reduce the exposure. Closing doors and ventilating vapors are included in the air so that it does not pay at high concentrations at the ground level. However, the Compton and San Pedro facilities do not have the same air quality controls.

West Long Beach Community defenders have asked the air regulators to install more monitors and analyze health risks from the last 30 years when methyl bromide is used there.

The area of ​​the southern coast conducted a preliminary evaluation that determines which facilities can influence the communities based on the data on the use of the volume of 2022, the meteorological models and the proximity to the residential neighborhoods. They said they would continue to collect emissions data to determine whether a health risk assessment should be carried out.

Whitney Amaya, West Long Beach resident and a member of East Yard Communities for Environmental Justice, said agencies need to do better work to protect communities at risk.

“This is just a bad news after bad news,” said Whitney Amaya, West Long Beach resident and a member of East Yard Communities for environmental justice. “These are our lives, right? These are members of our family, our neighbors who live here, and this is the future generation, these are children. We cannot normalize these operations and just say that it is good to continue to do a business as it is.”

This article was Originally Published on CalMatters and was reissued under Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Noderivatives License.