Study Faults State on Risk of Pesticides

A coalition of environmental groups released a new study Tuesday that accuses state and federal authorities of understating the risk of pesticides blown into the air from California farms.

In the report, researchers with Californians for Pesticide Reform said they found chemicals commonly used to kill bugs and fungi on crops spread farther through the air than previously reported by government regulatory agencies, posing excessive risk to thousands of people in agricultural regions and to those who use some of the chemicals on lawns and gardens.