ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE: A CASE STUDY OF FARM WORKERS IN SOUTH FLORIDA

ABSTRACT

One purpose of this study is to examine the complex government infrastructure that implements and enforces laws that were created to protect farm workers from environmental hazards. The second purpose is to present a case study on farm workers in South Florida to determine whether the federal and state laws are protecting this occupational group from environmental hazards related to pesticide exposure.

A survey based on questions that pertain to various laws was used to gather data on farm workers in two South Florida counties. Face-to-face interviews were conducted with farm workers at several migrant farm worker day care centers in Palm Beach and Indian River County, Florida. The findings of the study reveal that federal and state laws which are currently in place to protect the workers from pesticide exposure do not adequately protect the workers from exposure to harmful pesticides and farm workers are uninformed of the laws which exist to protect them from possible pesticide exposure.

The study concludes with policy recommendations that will improve the implementation and enforcement of the current laws designed to protect farm workers from pesticide exposure.