Parents have power to stop schools from pesticide use

Subject: PARENTS HAVE POWER
Date: Thu, 27 Jul 2000 13:34:58 -0600
From: Irene Wilkenfeld <irw@uswest.net>

On July 6, 2000 I had a phone call from a concerned individual (who must remain anonymous at this time because of veiled threats of harassment). I was informed that Banyan Elementary School (in the Conejo School District in Newberry Park, CA) planned to fumigate the campus because one tunnel of termites had been found on one beam at the facility. In my capacity as an environmental health consultant, specializing in school environments, this concerned individual was calling for suggestions about how to prevent the fumigation and avoid contaminating the schoolhouse with pesticides. We talked at length about organizational strategies and the importance of engaging the community and the media in this “crusade.” I also discussed alternative pest management options that did not rely on synthetic chemicals. Specifically I told this individual about a heat-based process (ThermaPure) that is available in this very community.

You can imagine how gratifying it was for me to read the LA Times article (July 24) reprinted below. I have since had a wonderful follow-up phone call with this individual. I was told that initially contacts with the school district elicited comments like “crackpot.” “It was like facing a brick wall.” But persistence paid off. One parent circulated a petition and collected some 200 signatures in surrounding neighborhoods from “anyone who cares about kids.” Other parents contacted the media and threatened removing their children (diabetic, asthmatic, allergic) from the school if the fumigation plans went ahead. Children made signs reading, “At least my parents care.”

Ironically it was discovered that the pest control company that was contracted to handle the chemical fumigation is also licensed to provide the heat-based technique, but they never suggested its use to the school’s personnel.

Banyan Elementary Holds Off on Fumigation Plans: Public Outcry Leads School District to Plan Meetings with Residents

NEWBURY PARK – Banyan Elementary School officials indefinitely postponed a fumigation date after parents decried the use of allegedly toxic chemicals at the school.

Fumigators hired by the Conejo Valley Unified School District were schedule to treat the campus buildings for termites Friday, but after more than 25 parents threatened to blockade the building, officials agreed to postpone the fumigation and meet with concerned residents, said Gary Mortimer, the district’s assistant superintendent.

The district has been using the pesticide Vicain for at least two years, Mortimer said.

That was news to many parents. If they had known earlier, they would have protested long ago, said Banyan’s incoming PTA President Mark Mendez.

“Vicain is a sulfuric fluoride, a neurotoxin,” he said. “A five-year study on it is coming out [soon], and it indicates that it can cause children to develop neurological damage. It can be really harmful to children with asthma and can cause multiple sclerosis and severe neurological problems.”

“We wouldn’t be using it if we weren’t confident that it was safe,” he said. “But if people feel that strongly about it, being a district official, it’s prudent for me to step back and talk with them.”

The district has not yet set a date to meet with parents, but the discussion will likely be held later this year, officials said.

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