Pesticides Make Our Air Quality Worse

Pesticides are toxic chemicals, even at very low doses of exposure, especially for children. But even that’s not the end of the story.

Spraying pesticides also involves a “carrier” compound or solvent, which releases volatile organic compounds (VOCs),  like benzene-related chemicals. The active ingredient in many pesticides may also contain VOCs, and those VOCs combine with other pollution components like nitrogen oxides to form both ozone and particulate pollution. A new study shows that a seemingly small amount of VOCs can have an astonishing impact on overall air quality.

Researchers from the UK found that aerosol products used in the home, primarily in personal care products like spray deodorant and hairspray, now emit more harmful VOC air pollution than all the vehicles in the UK. That’s why the Utah Division of Air Quality has been asking Utahns for several years to stop using these kinds of products. A small amount really matters.

So when we say that the VOCs emitted by the Salt Lake City Mosquito Abatement District’s (SLCMAD) aerial spraying of pesticides makes our air quality worse, this research provides more evidence of why that is true.

Please go to our petition, sign it, and send a message to SLCMAD board members and the Salt Lake City Council. Tell them to stop the chemical arms race!