PESTICIDES: Immunity for manufacturers would harm Idaho

Did anyone notice Bayer’s full-page ad on Sunday, May 26 purporting to help farmers and fight hunger? Curious why the German big-pharma company is advertising here? Bayer has large phosphate mines in southeast Idaho. How about the full-page ad on Sunday, March 3 from Idaho Grain with the young couple holding a child, pitting farmers against “trial lawyers” and asking you to support HB653?

Both are behind legislation, first HB653 and then a new version SB1432, let’s call it the “Pesticide Immunity Bill.” The Idaho House and Senate adjourned on April 3 without considering either bill, but they will be back, courtesy of the South Idaho legislators peddling them. According to the Idaho Conservation League, the bill would provide sweeping immunity to pesticide manufacturers so long as the EPA has approved their product for use.

Bayer is seeking similar protections in Iowa, Missouri and Florida. It’s basic products liability law, not to mention subordinating state law to federal regulations. Per HB653 language, if the label warns of injury, and you are injured by it, in court you must rebut the presumption the warning was adequate, ie. overcome or disprove the presumption that the pesticide did not cause your injury.

The way Bayer purports to “fight hunger” is to poison our fields and food with chemicals that create bigger yields and pest resistance with impunity. As stated by the ICL — the Idaho Legislature should NOT be limiting the ability of Idahoans injured by these chemicals to access the courts. Shame on our legislators. Be informed and focus on the true intentions of these powerful corporations.

CARYN DUBKE

Coeur d’Alene