Stanislaus, 3 other counties will take back farmers’ unwanted pesticides. Safety an issue
Stanislaus County is planning an event in October for collection of old pesticides that are stored on farmers’ properties.
The Board of Supervisors gave approval Tuesday evening to hold the four-county Pesticide Takeback Disposal event Oct. 11-13. The county agricultural commissioner’s office is organizing the state-funded event with Merced, Tuolumne and Mariposa counties.
Stanislaus agricultural commissioner staff said farm chemicals tend to accumulate on properties in barns, sheds and storage areas.
Storage of chemicals in older containers raises safety issues and can lead to environmental harm.
Improper storage “increases the likelihood of containers breaking down and leaking” and “release of pesticide concentrates into the environment can (result in) harming people, wildlife, water supply and the environment,” a county staff report said.
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation awarded $200,000 to the Stanislaus agricultural commissioner for costs of a pesticide takeback disposal event. The goal is providing a safe opportunity for farmers in the four counties to get rid of unwanted pesticides.
Supervisor Vito Chiesa asked county staff if farmers can bring in pesticides that are not labeled. “There is always a legacy pesticide you didn’t finish and it sits there in containers for years,” Chiesa said.
Agricultural Commissioner Linda Pinfold said people can turn in unlabeled or unknown pesticides.
Participating farmers must register ahead of time for the event. County staff said the free takeback event is voluntary and will be held in the parking lot of the county Agricultural Center, 3800 Cornucopia Way in south Modesto. No enforcement action will take place.
The disposal event is not for pesticide dealers, industrial companies or commercial entities, and it’s not for dropping off household wastes.
A survey was conducted in spring 2022 to measure the need for a collection day, revealing at least 40 eligible participants.
The county has chosen San Jose-based ACTenviro as the vendor to run the disposal event and unload toxic pesticides brought in by farmers. The vendor will handle storage and placards for the chemicals before the wastes are transported to a permitted disposal facility.
During the three-day event, the agricultural commissioner will coordinate with county departments and agencies that use the ag center.
More than 85 farmers in Stanislaus County participated in a pesticide takeback effort in 2014, dropping off 141 containers of dated pesticides. The event collected almost 37,000 pounds of unwanted pesticides.
A year later, 55 farmers brought in 1,676 containers and a total of 38,310 pounds of unwanted pesticides at another takeback event.
The county Agricultural Commissioner’s office can be reached at 209-525-4730.
This story was originally published August 16, 2023 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Stanislaus, 3 other counties will take back farmers’ unwanted pesticides. Safety an issue."
