Marin lawmaker’s bill would curtail weedkillers along state highways

In one of his first bills, newly elected Assemblymember Damon Connolly of San Rafael is proposing to ban the use of weedkillers on state highways in counties such as Marin that restrict the use of the products.

Assembly Bill 99 would require Caltrans to use other types of vegetation control such as tarping, organic pesticides and mulching, among others. The bill would allow for exceptions during wildfires and if state road managers can prove there is no alternative vegetation management practice available.

“The health implications are well known at this point, as well as the environmental impacts,” Connolly said. “These products are getting into our waterways, seeping into our soils, and people are being exposed. Obviously, people are using our roadways and we feel they should not have to take their health into their own hands in using the roadways.”

Connolly, a Democrat who was sworn in this month as the District 12 representative, seeks to build on restrictions on pesticides and herbicides passed in Marin and Sonoma counties.

Marin County stopped using glyphosate — the main ingredient in Bayer’s Roundup herbicide — in all county parks, open space preserves, landscaping, playgrounds, walkways and parking areas in 2015.

Other cities such as Novato and San Rafael have since stopped using the herbicide as well, citing potential health risks.

Caltrans, as a state agency, does not have to abide by county restrictions. Glyphosate is the main herbicide the agency uses to control vegetation.

Caltrans spokesperson Matt O’Donnell said the agency does not comment on pending legislation. Caltrans says it uses herbicides on invasive weeds that can block visibility and pose a fire risk because mowing or weed trimming makes the problem worse by spreading the seeds.

Connolly said he and his staff are awaiting a response from Caltrans on the legislation.

“We’re anticipating getting feedback, whether it’s related to cost or other factors, but we strongly believe that the health impacts outweigh the cost here,” Connolly said.

The use of glyphosate herbicides and its impacts on human health has been a point of debate.

In 2015, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer classified glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans” based on limited evidence in humans and experiments on animals.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency states the chemical does not pose a serious health risk and is unlikely to cause cancer in humans. Last summer, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the agency’s 2020 finding and ordered it to reexamine the issue. The EPA says its findings remain the same despite the court decision.

Pesticide Free Zone, a nonprofit in Kentfield, praised Connolly’s legislation.

“When you think about what Caltrans is accomplishing by using this, it’s really minuscule compared to the health effects and environmental effects it has on everything,” said Ginger Souders-Mason, the nonprofit’s executive director.

Other environmental groups, such as the California Invasive Plant Council and the Marin Conservation League support the judicious use of herbicides when no other alternatives are available in order to reduce the spread of invasive plants.

“We do not support completely removing herbicides from the integrated pest management toolbox, nor do we support widespread spraying of herbicides over large agricultural areas or other broad spaces,” Marin Conservation League member Nona Dennis said.

“The best available scientific information at this time says that the herbicide active ingredient glyphosate, when used for invasive plant management projects in accordance with its label and with appropriate personal protective equipment and best practices, is low risk for wildlife, applicators and the public,” the California Invasive Plant Council states in a position statement on glyphosate.

Connolly said he limited the proposed restrictions to highways in counties that already ban the products rather than implement a statewide ban because he wanted to preserve local control among counties and avoid a potential veto by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

“This is a more narrowly tailored approach that we believe has a strong chance of getting successfully passed and then signed,” Connolly said.

Last year, Newsom vetoed Assembly Bill 2146, which would have banned the use of neonicotinoid pesticides for most non-agricultural uses. Newsom wrote in his veto message that the California Department of Pesticide Regulation is set to undertake a review of the pesticide for non-agricultural use in 2023 to develop potential regulations.

A copy of Assembly Bill 99 can be found at bit.ly/3QZYMDY.