By Renee Hickman

Sept 29 (Reuters) – Pesticides containing toxic “forever chemicals” will now be tracked by the state of California, the country’s largest producer of agricultural products. 

The legislation, signed this week by Governor Gavin Newsom, requires the state’s Department of Pesticide Regulation to indicate whether agricultural pesticides contain perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, when reporting their use in a public database.

It also requires the department to track PFAS pesticide use trends in the state, where nearly half of the vegetables and more than three-quarters of the fruits and nuts in the US are grown. 

Environmental advocates hope that better data on use of PFAS and their impacts will ultimately lead to more regulation. 

“This will give the state the opportunity to start analyzing what’s being used, applied where, and how to move forward to get rid of it,” said Monica Amarelo, vice president of media relations at the Environmental Working Group, an advocacy group that supported the legislation.

Research has linked PFAS exposure to harmful health outcomes including cancer, high cholesterol and immune system effects, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

PFAS chemicals are used in a wide variety of products, including water-repellent clothing, firefighting foam and grease-, water- and oil-resistant products like non-stick cooking utensils. 

An earlier version of the bill, sponsored by Burbank Democrat Nick Schultz, would have prohibited state regulators from approving new pesticides containing PFAS chemicals. That version, championed by environmental groups, was widely opposed by farm groups in the state. It was scaled back to its current version. 

Still, Schultz said, the law is “a vital step toward ensuring California’s agricultural legacy is defined by health and innovation. Tracking and monitoring is the crucial first step.”     “You can’t fix what you can’t see,” he said.

(Reporting by Renee Hickman in Chicago; Editing by Bill Berkrot)