| According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, pesticides poison an estimated 10,000 to 20,000 agricultural workers each year. The estimation is so broad because there is no formal reporting system. Many pesticide related illnesses either go unreported or are not recognized because the symptoms can be similar to the common cold or the flu in the less severe cases. The Bureau of Labor Statistics finds that agricultural workers experience the highest rate of exposure to chemical-related illness of any occupation. In 2004, nearly half of the reported pesticide cases in California involved agricultural workers. There is no question that pesticide exposure is a major problem in this industry. It’s especially harmful because many workers don’t have health insurance and can’t afford treatment. Because pesticides can be easily transported, these dangers are also evident in the families of the workers. Unlike the physical injuries workers sustain, pesticide exposure is becoming an even greater problem, because money is spent in developing these chemicals to make them more effective, but these upgrades often make the chemicals even more harmful to the workers. |
Image borrowed from fims.uwo.ca |
