TO provide firmer guidelines on the protection of farmworkers against the risks of being exposed to highly toxic pesticides, a partylist lawmaker has renewed her call for the immediate passage of the proposed Farm Workers’ Protection Act.
AAMBIS-OWA Rep. Sharon Garin said her House Bill (HB) 3595, which is pending with the Committee on Agriculture and Food since August 2019, seeks to provide firmer guidelines on the protection of farmworkers against the risks of being exposed to highly toxic pesticides.
According to Garin, farmers and agricultural workers, particularly those who are working in vegetable farms, have high exposure to pesticides with carcinogens.
The lawmaker, citing the Journal of Rural Medicine, said the most common types of pesticides used in the country are organophosphate insecticides, carbamates and synthetic pyrethroids—each providing distinct hazards to pesticide handlers.
The lawmaker also said a 2015 study done on pesticide use among farmers in Mindanao echoed the need to educate farmers about the risks of being exposed to highly toxic pesticides, underscore the importance of proper handling and application, and introduce alternative pest management methods.
“Organophosphates can be absorbed by humans through skin and inhalation, resulting nausea, diarrhea and other adverse effects on the nervous system. Many carbamates are known carcinogens or cancer-causing, while pyrethroids may also cause users to experience dizziness, headache, nausea and diarrhea. Exposure to immense doses leads to acute poisoning and can be fatal,” she said.
Upon the enactment of the bill, farm owners and operators shall be required to conduct mandatory testing for the presence of organophosphate pesticides in their respective agricultural sites.
The bill proposes an intensified education campaign among farmworkers and their families about the hazards of exposure to pesticides, how to avoid such exposures to children, personal clothing and possessions, and what to do if pesticide exposure or contamination occurs.
A provision in the bill also requires every incident of pesticide exposure to farmworkers or their families, whether by direct exposure to pesticide applications or from the drift of pesticides from the application site must be reported to the Department of Agriculture.
The measure empowers the Department of Agriculture to assess penalties or fines against farm owners and operators for violation of the proposal. In no circumstance will any penalty or fine exceed P100,000.
It also directed the department to issue an annual report of all farm inspections to the legislature for the previous calendar year, including compliance with the requirements contained in the proposal, enforcement actions, fines and penalties for non-compliance resulting from such inspections; and pesticide exposure or contamination reports.
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