California Schools Required To Provide Spray Notification

The bill, known as the "Healthy Schools Act of 2000," covers not only outdoor uses, but also indoor uses and in school vehicles, according to the San Jose Mercury News. It was written by Assemblyman Kevin Shelley, D-San Francisco, and applies to all public schools from kindergarten to 12th grade. The law goes into effect next year, according to the Mercury News.

Concern that bug and weed sprays contain carcinogens or can cause respiratory and neurological ailments prompted the bill, according to the AP. The bill requires parents and teachers to be advised of spray dates and requires signs to be posted at a site for 24 hours before and for 72 hours after spraying. Additionally, a registry will be established for parents to sign up to be notified 72 hours before pesticides are applied.

California’s law is not a new one, as 13 other states also have some sort of law requiring schools to notify parents of pesticide use, said Gene Harrington of the National Pest Management Association. Those states are Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas and West Virginia.

Some 70 educational, environmental, health and civic organizations supported the California bill, including the American Lung Association of California. "There are other ways to kill pests that don't cause cancer and aggravate other health problems," lung association spokesman Andy Weisser said.

The California Public Interest Research Group determined this year that the state's 14 largest school systems, which combined have 1.5 million students, used 76 different chemicals for controlling bugs and weeds on campus. It found that the Los Angeles and San Francisco districts were the only ones providing written notification to parents and teachers.

At the signing ceremony, Gov. Davis said, "Kids should not be exposed to dangerous and toxic materials."