Quick Take:
Watsonville city council members unanimously approved a resolution Tuesday night encouraging the transition to organic farming on agricultural fields within one mile of the city’s urban limit line. It also says the city will coordinate with local and private organizations to make that happen. While the city has no authority to force growers to make the transition, advocates for stricter rules surrounding pesticide use near school say the resolution “puts the city on the record” about their support for the shift to organic.
The Watsonville City Council is encouraging growers to shift to organic farming on agricultural land within a mile of the city.
During their regular Tuesday meeting council members unanimously approved a resolution that says the city council encourages the transition to organic farming on agricultural fields within one mile of the city’s urban limit line. It also says the city will coordinate with local and private organizations to make that happen. (Councilmember Jimmy Dutra was absent from the vote.)
The resolution came after a local group, the Campaign for Organic and Regenerative Agriculture (CORA), demanded the city support their campaign calling on growers to stop spraying pesticides near schools, during a meeting in April. CORA co-founder Adam Scow, who was part of those efforts, said he’s happy about the city’s resolution.
“We like it – it’s to the point and strong,” he said. “The support of having a one-mile buffer zone of organic agriculture around the city is a great idea. It would also positively impact the schools.”
While the city has no authority to force growers to make the transition, Scow said this resolution “puts the city on the record” about their support for the shift to organic.
He also said “it’s a springboard” for CORA to take the issue to the county as well. He said they’ve met with Santa Cruz County Supervisors Justin Cummings and Felipe Hernandez and plan to meet with the other supervisors as well. Scow hopes CORA will be able to present to the board in September.
“The county has some more power. The pesticides being sprayed on land are not in the city, they’re outside the city line,” he said. “The jurisdiction is both the county and the state. So, the county can explore more options as to some actions they could take.”
Scow said the big goal is to have the entire Pajaro Valley go organic to help protect populations that are most susceptible – such as children and older adults – to toxic chemicals in pesticides.
During the April city council meeting, several farmworker families shared their experiences working in the fields and how it impacted them. Many expressed certainty that pesticides had caused their children’s medical conditions, ranging from learning disabilities to hearing loss.
Scow hopes that the county will support their efforts to transition farmland around neighborhoods and schools to go organic.
“What powers can we actually get the ag commissioner to leverage?” he asked. “But the ag [agriculture] commissioner could implement more restrictions that help push a de facto transition to organic.”