{"id":11296,"date":"2021-04-02t18:57:42","date_gmt":"2021-04-02t18:57:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dpetrov.2create.studio\/planet\/wordpress\/heat-smoke-pandemic-dangers-multiply-for-farmworkers-in-2020\/"},"modified":"2023-03-07t19:39:28","modified_gmt":"2023-03-07t19:39:28","slug":"farmworkers-dangers-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.getitdoneaz.com\/story\/farmworkers-dangers-2020\/","title":{"rendered":"heat, smoke, pandemic: dangers multiply for farmworkers in 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"
by lauren hernandez<\/strong><\/p>\n los angeles \u2013 the timing has been terrible for california farmworkers in 2020: wilting heat waves, wildfires spewing acrid smoke across the state and the persistent threat of covid-19. this triple threat looms large over the lucrative fall harvest of grapes and almonds, which for some seasonal laborers is the busiest time of year, until november.<\/p>\n kent e. pinkerton, a leading expert in farmworker health, has been worried about such a threat for a decade. the pandemic, which is expected to linger in california for months, could be an invisible killer in the fields.<\/p>\n \u201cit is extremely difficult for those workers to be able to social distance themselves, and so i think it is incredibly important that the workers and those who are supervising the workers take into account some of the things that they can do to protect the workers from potentially becoming infected with coronavirus,\u201d said pinkerton, who is the director of center for health and the environment and a professor at university of california, davis.<\/p>\n farmworkers say they\u2019re vulnerable to the health effects of the novel coronavirus and wildfires, and have little means to seek treatment because many lack health insurance.<\/p>\n \u201cunfortunately, we don\u2019t have insurance, and that is one of the consequences we face as farmworkers. that is why we have to be prepared,\u201d said veronica mota, a farmworker for 20 years and an organizer with united farm workers.<\/p>\n mota spoke about her children, calling them her motivation and inspiration. her daughter, who is in college and voting for the first time, is mota\u2019s reminder to focus on herself.<\/p>\n \u201cduring high school, she was really into cross country, and she motivated me to have a will to live,\u201d mota said. \u201cwhen you live and work in this country, you get stressed and can stop taking care of yourself in a way. but when you look at your daughter and see that she runs and crosses a whole community, you say, \u2018wow, if she can do this, so can i.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n mota has worked in california, oregon and washington, all three affected by wildfires, and has experience picking all types of fruits and vegetables. the challenges of 2020 have created exceptional frustration and fear, she said.<\/p>\n \u201cwe feel abandoned and like we have no support. we work honorably, and if it weren\u2019t for the work that we do, there wouldn\u2019t be food on the tables,\u201d mota said.<\/p>\n heat stress and exhaustion are detrimental and life-threatening side effects of hot weather \u2013 and often unavoidable. poor air quality harms everyone\u2019s health, and farm work is time sensitive: waiting for skies to clear of smoke could mean a crop rots in the fields. but that type of exposure also can harm lungs and hearts, pinkerton said.<\/p>\n the coronavirus makes battling these threats even harder because keeping a safe distance while harvesting is nearly impossible.<\/p>\n \u201cas advocates and an organization made up of farmworkers and their families,\u201d said irene de barraicua of lideres campesinas, a nonprofit that advocates for the rights of female farmworkers, \u201cwe know that they live in very crowded housing, we know that they carpool to work and we know that employers are maybe at times going to do anything they can to make it safer and enforce social distancing and maybe give masks \u2026 what they don\u2019t seem to take responsibility for is that once their workers are leaving the workplace they see them gathering in groups or getting in cars together.\u201d<\/p>\n