Press Release | Nutty Forest Complaint | Nutty Forest Stipulated Judgment | Samara Ranch Stipulated Judgment | Samara Ranch Complaint
Woodland, CA – December 20, 2018 – Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig announced today that Samara Ranches Yolo LLC and Nutty Forest LLC will each pay $18,500 in penalties and costs to resolve claims relating to their failures to comply with laws intended to protect workers and the public from harmful pesticide exposure. The Yolo County Superior Court ordered the companies to pay this amount after the parties reached an agreement on this and other terms through a stipulation.
Samara Ranches and Nutty Forest own and operate separate farms in Woodland, and both use various pesticides at their farms. The District Attorney’s investigation, which received significant assistance from the Yolo County Department of Agriculture, found both companies had failed to notify the Department of Agriculture before using what are known as “restricted materials”—that is, pesticides known to have a higher potential to cause harm to public health, farm workers, domestic animals, honeybees, the environment, wildlife, or other crops relative to other pesticides. Both companies, the Department of Agriculture also found, had failed to abide by various laws intended to protect workers who are handling pesticides or are exposed to pesticides, including laws requiring appropriate training and proper personal protective equipment.
Under the terms of the judgments, Samara Ranches and Nutty Forest will each pay $18,500 in penalties and costs, and going forward, will be required to use pesticides in a manner that is more protective of workers and the public.
“The failure to follow pesticide regulations can result in serious injury to farm workers and the public,” said District Attorney Reisig. “It also gives those companies that fail to comply with pesticide laws an unfair advantage over those that do. This office is committed to enforcing environmental laws to ensure worker and public safety and also to ensure a level-playing field for businesses.”
Samara Ranches and Nutty Forest were cooperative with the District Attorneys’ investigation, and have agreed to improve their pesticide practices to prevent future violations of pesticide laws.
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