The truck has been pulling up in my neighborhood every day now for weeks, a harbinger of a California spring as sure as any Eastern robin. She parks, puts up a wooden sign reading "Oxnard, fresh," and the picture - no more is necessary - and sets out her wares. They're ripe, red, and fresh. If I ask her how long ago they were picked, she says "hours" or "this morning," and indeed they're field-warm. I hand over six dollars for three pints, and soon the red juice runs down my chin as I ingest methyl iodide.
Methyl iodide is a known neurotoxin. It disrupts thyroid function, damages developing fetuses, and has caused lung tumors in laboratory animals. And it's the fumigant of choice for strawberry fields. Strawberries are my agricultural county's top-grossing crop, not to mention my favorite fruit. In twin politically charged decisions in which disappointed scientists accused political appointees of ignoring facts, methyl iodide was approved by both the Bush-era federal Environmental Protection Agency and the Schwarzenegger-era state Department of Pesticide Regulation. Now, both the federal EPA and Governor Jerry Brown are reconsidering. Comments to the EPA close tomorrow, April 29 - please comment today.