In the U.S., among children ages 1-14, cancer causes more deaths than any other disease.

(American Cancer Society, Cancer Facts & Figures 1996)

Who would suspect that beautiful Santa Barbara, a California coastal paradise, suffers a worse environmental pollution than Los Angeles? Would you believe that the cancer rate in Santa Barbara county is twice that of Los Angeles? Sadly, it is true. Why? The perverse answer is that Santa Barbara is an agricultural and garden community, and as such it is heavily sprayed with pesticides. Each year Santa Barbara County alone uses more than 3 million pounds of pesticides. Beautiful gardens both public and private, schools, daycare centers, malls, health clubs, golf courses, resorts, our new booming vineyards, and even our zoos spray toxic chemicals regularly, even when children are present. There are pesticides in the air we breathe, and our creeks and oceans are affected by pesticide drift and runoff. No community is immune.

The story is the same all over the United States:

Deadly chemicals are sold freely at every garden center, every hardware store, and even at supermarkets. Some of the most commonly used pesticide sprays, such as Diazinon, Malathion, and Dursban, are organophosphates: neurotoxins similar in structure to Sarin, a lethal nerve gas used in WW II. Roundup, the most commonly used and supposedly the safest herbicide, has been linked to Attention Deficit Disorder, hyperactivity, & respiratory and flu like symptoms in children. Pesticides are designed to kill, and they do. But while the world is waking up to the advantages of organically produced food, the ever present dangers of pesticides in our water and air remain largely unacknowledged.

Every day uninformed people poison themselves and their innocent neighbors.

Our common vulnerability to this ambient toxicity was cruelly brought home to a local family when, on October 10, 1998, they (including their 2 year-old daughter) suffered severe reactions from exposure to the pesticide Dursban, commonly used for termite control, via neighborhood drift. A reknowned toxicologist diagnosed chemical poisoning. After many futile attempts to get protection from future spraying, they resolved to do everything in their power to alert other families, protect them from dangerous pesticides and to advocate for their rights.

In October of 1999 they created PAAC (Pesticide Awareness And Alternative Coalition), and the idea for California's first Organic Festival.

Enlisting a group of dedicated community members, they formed a powerful board that brought life to their dream. On September 17, 2000, less than a year later, the first California Organic Festival was celebrated in Santa Barbara's beautiful Oak Park.

With a sold-out vendor and non-profit capacity, over 5,000 people of all ages attended the day-long festival, featuring live music on two stages, exciting speakers, dancing, fun activities for children, and delicious organic foods and refreshments. Over sixty booths offered information and samples of organic gardening resources including publications, as well as non-toxic pest controls, ecologically sound building materials, and safer home and garden products. Among the supporting sponsors were Rodale Press, Patagonia, Wild Oats Market, Island Seed and Feed, KEYT TV and KDB Radio.(Complete list of participants)

The festival was such a resounding success that this year we are planning a two-day festival, on Saturday, September 8 and Sunday, September 9, 2001.

PAAC is a non-profit organization dedicated to public education through community events, outreach to schools/city government, and media awareness.

Beyond producing the Festival itself, PAAC’s annual public recognition and award program acknowledges outstanding environment accomplishment by a local business, individual homeowner, government agency and non-profit entity. Using the increased public awareness the event has generated, we encourage local officials - specifically the Parks and Recreation Department and local schools - to adopt environmentally friendly practices. We are working with Jeff Cope, Assistant Director for Santa Barbara City Parks, to expand his City Parks IPM (Integrated Pest Management) program. We also are talking with local high schools about adopting a sustainable landscape program. . Our goal is to provide a public forum and a model for safe alternatives to toxic pesticides in our communities.