Malathion Critics Add Economics to Health Argument
Each time Medfly helicopters swoop down on Orange County, the local auto dealership that Gary Jernegan runs has to spend $871 for workers to scrub down hundreds of malathion-tarnished cars.
Rebecca Asano, manager of a local club called Reflections, isn’t even bothering to open the popular Vietnamese nightspot tonight during the latest round of spraying, even though Thursdays are one of her busiest nights. “The last time they sprayed, no one knew what was going on and everyone ran out scared,” she said.
Malathion critics and some local business people are beginning to complain more stridently than ever as they shift and expand their attack on the state’s Medfly campaign from health concerns to financial woes.
Economics has long been the trump card of state officials in their assault on the Mediterranean fruit fly, as they point vigorously to the necessity of protecting California’s $16-billion agriculture industry from the crop attacker.
But some Southland malathion protesters, unable to sway state officials with their allegations about malathion’s health effects, are now trying to make the Medfly a dollar-and-cents issue themselves.
Joined by some local business leaders, they claim the spraying could cost the local economy millions of dollars in lost business. They plan to voice those complaints for the first time formally today as part of a protest before the scheduled spraying of a 36-square-mile area around Westminster and Garden Grove.
“Unfortunately, some people don’t pay attention to an issue like this until it affects their pocketbooks,” said local resident Bob Taylor, a leader of Orange County Citizens Against Malathion Spraying. “We know that money talks.”
Malathion critics in Orange and Los Angeles counties are even considering a fruit boycott. The idea got the backing of United Farm Workers President Cesar Chavez, who discussed it with anti-malathion activists at a meeting in Burbank earlier this week.
“As I see it,” Chavez said in an interview Wednesday, “a lot of people are pretty upset because they feel like their concerns have been completely disregarded. (A boycott) would be a good way to do something about that.”
But agriculture leaders counter-attacked Wednesday with a press conference of their own to stress what they say is the safety and effectiveness of the eradication effort, and to try to quell rising public protests.
Gathered at a scenic spot in front of an orange grove in Brea, leaders of the Orange County Farm Bureau warned that if the Medfly is allowed to infest Southern California permanently, farmers would spray thousands of pounds of pesticides on their crops--many times more than are now being used--to guard against maggots. And consumers have consistently said they want less pesticide on their fruits, the farm representatives stressed.
If the state is not allowed to continue its eradication efforts, warned Alan Reynolds, orchard manager for Treasure Farms in Irvine, “we are going to set ourselves back a number of years” in the ongoing effort to reduce pesticide use in agriculture.
Nanci M. Jimenez, Orange County Farm Bureau executive director, said: “This issue has come to a head. And we’re afraid the public is not getting both sides of the debate.”
But malathion critics insist they have heard both sides. And they conclude that the effort is not worth the health or economic risks.
Kent Salholm, a Garden Grove chiropractor who is on the board of the city’s Chamber of Commerce, said he has heard from at least two dozen local merchants who have expressed concern about the economic impact of the spraying. The chamber called for an end to the spraying last month.
“The question is,” Salholm said, “why should Garden Grove subsidize the growers? That’s really what we’re doing.
Added Jernegan, general manager of the Garden Grove Hyundai dealership: “It’s costing me $871 every time they spray to hire outside help and wash all the cars and soap ‘em. That’s expensive. . . . I don’t appreciate it one bit.”
Critics point to malls, shops, restaurants and schools in the eight-city spray area around Garden Grove and Westminster that have had to close early on past spray nights. They say the spraying may even have hurt some real estate values in the spray area. And they say they are worried that nationwide publicity about the spraying may scare away tourists if it continues through the popular Garden Grove Strawberry Festival and into the summer season.
Lucien Truehill, president of the Orange County Chamber of Commerce, said: “If the propaganda on both sides continues and it’s built into a media event through summer, I can see this having some real effect on tourists coming out. Who wants to come for a vacation to a place getting all this kind of publicity?”
Although local chambers of commerce said they have received some calls from tourists concerned about the spraying, several large hotels in the area said they have not suffered any real impact so far.
Orange County Citizens Against Malathion Spraying estimates a possible $150-million loss to the local economy, although spraying critics concede that estimates are based largely on anecdotal testimony from merchants and business leaders. Several of those leaders will be turning out for a press conference today before the 9 p.m. Garden Grove spraying. Tonight’s Medfly Spraying Helicopters are scheduled to spray a 36-square-mile area around sites where two Medflies were found in the last three months. State officials say the malathion pesticide is sae, but recommend that residents avoid being outside during the 9 p.m. spraying let pets in and cover their cars.
