Connecticut Considers Expanding School Pesticide Ban

HARTFORD — State lawmakers are considering two bills this session that would expand a state ban on lawn pesticides on school grounds, the Danbury News Times reports.

One of the bills, which prohibits the pesticides from being used on the grounds of any public or private school with students in the eighth grade or lower, passed the Education Committee today on a 22-1 vote.

Current law bars the application of lawn care pesticide on the grounds of public and private preschools and elementary schools, with some exceptions.

A second bill, which recently passed the Appropriations Committee, extends the ban to all schools, including high schools. It also requires the state Public Health Department to adopt regulations that require the use of "environmentally sensitive cleaning and maintenance products" to be used in schools to minimize any adverse health effects on children.

"In 2005, the assembly took the important step of protecting elementary school children from pesticides on school grounds. Middle and high school students deserve the same protection," said Rep. Andrew Fleischmann, D-West Hartford, co-chairman of the Education Committee. "Children who play sports and games on school fields should not have to deal with exposure to toxic pesticides and herbicides."

Both bills await further action in the House of Representatives.

Source: Danbury News Times, CT