The issue
You care about organics, so you work hard to keep pesticides away from your family and the food you eat. But there’s still a problem. A danger you can’t see…
Pesticides are routinely sprayed in the places you thought were safe…in public parks, in and around public buildings and on public roads. As a consequence, we are often exposed to poisons without even knowing it! To make things worse, pesticides drift away from the areas where they are applied.
Sandra Steingraber on The Role of Government
Our solution
By launching the Safe Public Places Project, Beyond Toxics began crucial negotiations with sustainable businesses, organic farmers, elected leaders and other partners to drastically limit the use of pesticides on Oregon’s public land. Our project calls for meeting significant reduction goals in the amount of pesticides used in parks, in and around public buildings and on public roads all throughout the state of Oregon. The scientific evidence is abundantly clear: pesticides are a public and environmental health problem, linked to persistent ecosystem damage and multiple chronic illnesses.
- NEW: Living on Earth radio show about Pesticide Use on Public Highways
- NEW: See video clips from an interview with Sandra Steingraber
- Project Resources
- Read the blog post on pesticide use on Oregon’s highways
- Read Lisa Arkin’s report about pesticide use on Oregon’s highways
(“Assessing Environmental Impact Quotients for Pesticide Use on State Highways in Lane County”) - Environment and Human Rights Advisory
- MORE about pesticide reform
History
Twenty years ago, the State of Oregon was a national leader in pesticide reduction. Unfortunately, the Oregon Integrated Pest Management law was dropped in 2001 due to outside political pressure. Building on our 2009 legislative victory to require all public schools in Oregon to use the least toxic methods for pest control, Beyond Toxics established a new campaign to take the next logical step. The Safe Public Places campaign seeks to require all state agencies to use stringent, protective Integrated Pest Management for public spaces we all share.
Take Action!
Beyond Toxics is leading the way for a simple solution. Now we can take action to restore Oregon’s leadership in the wave of change underway in America’s thinking!
Our campaign solutions seek these benefits for all Oregonians:
- Protect children’s health
- Save Oregon money
- Help protect our natural environment
- Protect Oregon’s growing economic market in organic farming
- Read the R-G Guest Editorial by Lisa Arkin, Beyond Toxics Exec. Director:
Mother Told to Accept The Fact That Her Child’s Urine has Pesticides - Sign our Pesticide Reform online petition–>
- SPP Project Flyer (2-sided PDF document)
- Read about the history of our campaign
- MORE about Integrated Pest Management
DO YOU HAVE A PESTICIDE EXPOSURE STORY?
Write to us: info@beyondtoxics.org
or
call the Beyond Toxics office in Eugene: 541-465-8860
Would you like to join our growing list of supporters of our Safe Public Places campaign?
Open the project pledge form and fill it in and send it to us:
Safe Public Places Project
c/o Beyond Toxics
P.O. Box 1106
Eugene, OR 97440
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Beyond Toxics is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization and all contributions are fully tax-deductible. Please consider giving a gift of a Beyond Toxics membership to a friend or family member!