Spurred By Cougar’s Sad Death, Rat Poison Ban Advances From State Assembly
Written by 991KBU on May 7, 2019
It may have taken the death of mountain lion P-47 to do it.
But legislation backed by Poison Free Malibu … aimed at banning rat poison on a statewide basis … passed the California Assembly by a 50 to 16 vote.
It needed 41 votes.
Bu the high profile death of the big cougar may have bene a major factor in winnign support from farm country assembly members … where rat poison is viewed as an essential food production tool.
Several rural area Republicans backed the bill …
Assemblyman Randy Voepel of eastern San Diego County says birds are getting hit
NEWSCART 75096 VOEPLE SUPPORT THIS BILL.
“Many of these raptors are dying because they are eating the rodents that have been poisoned by all sorts of chemicals.
“So I am going to support this bill.”
Other assembly members from urban areas said they are seeing sick wildlife too.
Assembly member Bill Quirk of the San Francisco Bay Area.
NEWSCART 75097 QUIRK RODENTS IN THE WILD
“We have an organization called Raptors Are The Solution … RATS … which points out that by killing the mountain mountain lions with these (poisons) … by killing the raptors … we are limiting the ways we can control the rodents in the wild.”
The proposed ban on rat poison is called Assembly Bill 1788.
It now moves to the state Senate … where Malibu-area Senator Henry Stern is carrying the bill.
Kian Schulman … founder of Poison Free Malibu … says that “with our Senator Henry Stern championing it, we are optimistic.”
