When I accepted the role of Northwest field staff representative, I don’t think I would have ever guessed where it would have taken me eight years later. If I were to wrap up my job role in one quick sentence, it would be to simply represent and promote the role of the golf course superintendent. In doing so, I was invited to serve on the board of directors for Oregonians for Food & Shelter, a non-profit group that represents a coalition of agriculture, forestry, and chemical and professional applicators to help ensure the rights to the responsible use pesticides, fertilizers and biotechnology. Last year I began my two-year term of chairman and am honored to represent the Oregon Golf Course Superintendents Association among such a diverse and strong coalition in the state of Oregon.

I will be the first to admit that serving in this role has its share of frustrations. In a state so rich with natural resources, I have a hard time understanding why it is a constant fight to preserve the right to safely and legally apply pesticides. Last year, we only narrowly — through a walk out — defeated bills to ban aerial application of herbicides to private forest land, and a bill to completely ban neonicotinoid insecticides and a ridiculous cap and trade bill. Only through negotiations to drop the previously mentioned legislation, were legislators able to wrap up the legislative year. Unfortunately, that set a bad tone within the capitol and the parties were more divisive.

 

This year, I felt like we were off to a great start when the Oregon Department of Agriculture (ODA) decided to form a Chlorpyrifos work group to work out an equitable solution to allow the restricted use of the product in lieu of a total ban. Members of the group included representatives from the following groups: Oregon Golf Course Superintendents Association, the Oregon Association of Nurserymen, Oregon State University, Oregonians for Food & Shelter, Oregon Department of Agriculture, Christmas Tree Growers, Oregon Environmental Council, Beyond Toxics, and Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (PCUN: a union for latino farm workers). As you can see, this is a very diverse group which represents all sides of the Chlorpyrifos issue.

We are scheduled to meet three times and then will provide a report to the legislature detailing steps that will be taken to eventually limit and possibly eliminate the need for the product. Unfortunately, this is not a simple task when there are so many crops in Oregon that depend on the chemistry for crop protection that cannot be replicated. For example, Oregon provides the largest quantity of Christmas trees in the nation and a vary large percentage is shipped directly to Mexico. The Mexican government will not accept the crop unless it is treated with Chlorpyrifos prior to export to eliminate the chance of bringing unwanted pests into their country. Without Chlorpyrifos, the state would lose out on millions in revenue from exports. Then there’s the Japanese beetle; we all know what the Japanese beetle can do. Currently, Oregon is relatively free from it, at least for now. Golf is lucky in that we have alternate products that can control crane fly and other destructive pests. However, I would still like to have it available for that “silver bullet” when needed.

On the other side of the coin are the risks associated with the exposure to the product. The Oregon Environmental Council states the risks associated with the use on food crops and the poisoning of our children. PCUN is concerned for the migrant workers that are either spraying the product or picking the fruits and vegetables inside of the re-entry period (which, of course, would be illegal). They are also concerned about poor sanitation for the families that are living in farmer-provided housing. Children can potentially be affected indirectly through spray drift or the product infecting children’s clothing when washed in the same facility.

As we all are making our cases in the meeting, I can see that what PCUN is really looking for is better working conditions. A safe and separate place to shower and do laundry that is contaminated with chemical residue. If we could simply get past this issue, I feel like this would not be such a controversial issue.

Just when I think that the group is working well and are having good discussions around the safety of the product, we find out that Oregon Representative Holvey is introducing a Chlorpyrifos ban in this year’s short session which is supposed to be reserved for budgetary issues. Through aggressive lobbying by Beyond Toxics and other environmental groups, Holvey is proposing immediate passage (due to emergency clause) prohibiting the aerial application of the active ingredient Chlorpyrifos, creating a 300-foot buffer around school campuses and a total ban on the product in the state by January 2, 2023. On top of that, the governor has placed the bill in the hands of the House Interim committee on Health Care instead of the House Ag Committee, where at least the bill would have a fair chance and would be worked by people that have a background in agriculture.

I can’t blame the ODA, they were trying their best to work out an equitable solution. Instead, the environmental lobbyists took the low road and undermined any trust that could have been built between the two sides of the issue.

 

February is supposed to be a short month, but I have a feeling it’s not going to be easy.  The governor and much of the House and Senate are planning on pushing through their cap and trade bill once again. I have a feeling that the state’s natural resource community will push back. My son recently shared with me that the agriculture company that he works for is sending seven large semis to the capitol to join the #TimberUnity protesters. They will clog up the streets of Salem for pretty much the entire day. Last year, the very same protest prompted the senator's walk out of the session. Stay tuned…