Strawberry farmers routinely fumigate their soil with methyl bromide to protect the vulnerable plants from disease. The methyl bromide escapes into the stratosphere, where it attacks the protective layer of ozone that shields the planet from ultraviolet radiation. Under the 1989 Montreal Protocol , a global agreement to restrict ozone-depleting substances, the EPA will end U.S. methyl bromide use in 2005. The chemical is currently used in a wide range of applications, from fumigating imported goods to killing termites. Environmental activists have criticized the use of methyl bromide as an agricultural fumigant, citing its contribution to ozone depletion and health risks for farmworkers.
Effective alternatives exist for most uses of methyl bromide.
However, none is as effective as a fumigant for strawberry fields. Strawberries are vulnerable to a handful of soil pathogens. Most soil fumigants control only one or two. Methyl bromide kills all of them. Before the EPA bans methyl bromide in 2005, strawberry farmers must find another way to control diseases in their fields.