Subject: Failing to Properly Ventilate Fumigated Buildings Can Kill
More Than "Pests"----
Date: Sat, 09 Dec 2000 13:04:02 -0500
From: Stephen Tvedten <steve@getipm.com>
Organization: Get Set Inc. (www.getipm.com)To: Paul Helliker <phelliker@cdpr.ca.gov>
Director, State
of California, Department of Pesticide Regulation
Dear Mr. Helliker,
I thought you might like to read your own press release entitled: FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE - December 5,
2000 (00-31) - HTTP://www.cdpr.ca.gov
- Southern California Pest Control Company Charged With Failing to Properly
Ventilate Fumigated Buildings.
SAN DIEGO - Criminal charges have been filed in Superior
Court here against a Southern California pest control company, its owner and
its manager for health and safety violations that occurred when they allegedly
failed to properly ventilate fumigated buildings.
Country Fume, Inc., based in El Monte, owner Raymond de
la Torre, and manager Epigmenio Lopez de la Torre were charged by the San
Diego City Attorney with 33 violations of state law and regulations governing
the use of methyl bromide and sulfuryl fluoride (better known by its trade
name, Vikane). These pesticides are used to fumigate buildings infested with
termites and other wood-destroying pests.
Other counts involve consumer fraud for allegedly
charging some customers for whole-house fumigation treatments and then not
applying any fumigating gas to the homes.
"Although the violations in this complaint occurred
in San Diego County, this company acted as a fumigation subcontractor in
several Southern California counties, including Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside
and San Bernardino," said Paul Helliker, Director of the California
Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR).
"We have no reason to believe that the company's illegal and
potentially hazardous business practices were confined to one county."
The lead investigative agency is the San Diego County
Department of Agriculture, Weights and Measures, which regulates pesticide use
in the county in both agricultural and structural settings. Also involved in
the investigation are the State Structural Pest Control Board, which licenses
businesses that perform structural pest control, and DPR, which regulates the
use of pesticides by these licensees.
State and local officials suggested that persons whose
residences were recently fumigated contact their pest control company to ask
if Country Fume was the fumigation subcontractor.
"If so, consumers may wish to ask to have their homes reexamined
for pest problems," said Kelli Okuma, registrar of the California
Structural Pest Control Board, "because Country Fume has been charged
with not using any fumigant in several homes it was contracted to treat."
The most serious violations charged against the company
involved failing to adequately clear a residence of methyl bromide before
allowing the house to be reoccupied, and for using fumigant without adding
chloropicrin as required by federal law and state regulations.
(Chloropicrin is tear gas and acts as a chemical warning agent for the
colorless, odorless fumigants.)
Methyl bromide and sulfuryl fluoride are fumigants used
to treat structures for termites and other wood-destroying pests. Because they
are gases, they do not stay on dry surfaces.
Therefore, there is insignificant exposure from touching treated
surfaces.
Symptoms of inhalation overexposure to methyl bromide
would be expected to appear within 4 to 12 hours, and can include blurred
vision, headache, and nausea. At
higher concentrations, methyl bromide can cause tremors, sleepiness,
convulsions, and excess fluid in the lungs.
Methyl bromide is on the State's Proposition 65 list of
chemicals known to cause reproductive toxicity. Women who were pregnant at the time of fumigation and believe
they may have been exposed should consult their physicians.
Symptoms of overexposure to sulfuryl fluoride (expected
to appear within 8 hours) include nose and throat irritation, and nausea. At
higher concentrations, it can cause excess fluid in the lungs, sleepiness,
pneumonia, and convulsions.
Sulfuryl fluoride is not considered a reproductive toxin.
Neither sulfuryl fluoride nor methyl bromide have been shown to cause
cancer when animals were exposed under experimental conditions.
The two chemicals have similar treatment methods.
The unoccupied structures are sealed, usually with large tarps.
The gaseous pesticide is pumped under the tarp and the structure is
left sealed for about 24 hours. Following
removal of the tarps, the structure must be ventilated for a period ranging
from six hours to seven days, depending on the chemical and whether fans are
used to help aerate the structure.
Once the tarps are removed, sulfuryl fluoride-fumigated
homes must be ventilated for six hours before the air inside is checked by
fumigation company personnel to ensure that it is safe to reoccupy.
Structures fumigated with methyl bromide must be ventilated for three
to seven days after the tarps are removed, depending on the method of
aeration. Residents must stay out
of fumigated structures considerably longer when methyl bromide is used.
State regulations also require buffer zones around methyl
bromide fumigations. Methyl
bromide cannot be used within 10 feet of a neighboring occupied structure. For
these reasons, most fumigators use sulfuryl fluoride although it is a much
more costly gas to purchase.
Twenty structures in San Diego County (including single
family homes, duplexes, and triplexes) were the subject of the Country Fume
investigation, which began in September.
Ten structures were fumigated with sulfuryl fluoride, although there
was at least one instance when the company allegedly neglected to use the
required chemical warning agent. Nine
of the homes were tarped and signs posted that they had been fumigated, but
repeated tests by inspectors over several days revealed no fumigant gas had
been used. One structure-a rental
duplex in the process of being sold-was posted as being treated with sulfuryl
fluoride but when tested by inspectors was found to have been treated with
methyl bromide. (Real estate
agents were informed of the situation, and the house was locked and tenants
prevented from entering until it could be tested and certified as safe to
reoccupy.)
Representatives of Country Fume appeared in San Diego
Superior Court last week to answer charges.
Their arraignment was put over until December 14.
However, they agreed to a court order that they cease statewide
operations immediately.
According to pest control industry estimates, there are
approximately 95,000 fumigations annually in the state.
Most are in Southern California-45,000 in Los Angeles County and 10,000
in San Diego County. Because of increasing state restrictions on methyl bromide,
less than 2 percent of fumigations are now done with that pesticide, according
to industry experts.
DPR is one of six boards and departments within the
California Environmental Protection Agency. Its mission is to protect human
health and the environment by regulating pesticide sales and use and fostering
reduced-risk pest management.
-end-
Media contacts:
San Diego County Department of Agriculture:
Kathleen Thuner/858-967-9367
San Diego City Attorney's Office:
Steven Gold/619-533-6593
California Structural Pest Control Board:
Kelli Okuma/916-263-2540
California Department of Pesticide Regulation:
Veda Federighi/916-445-3974
Well Mr. Helliker, I would like to point out
fumigation is not only extremely dangerous but it is very ineffective,
especially if the wood is sealed
and there obviously is no "residual' pest "control" effect. Since 1953, when non-volatile borax was mandated in New
Zealand to be used to treat and to pretreat lumber and homes and buildings,
there has never been any evidence
of even one successful attack of wood destroying organisms in New Zealand, no
matter what the conditions. Borax
is safe enough to wash baby diapers in. But,
obviously there is a whole lot more money in fumigation.
Respectfully, Stephen
L. Tvedten
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