Sulfuryl fluoride is used to fumigate homes to kill termites since another pesticide, methyl bromide, was found to be ozone depleting. But sulfuryl fluoride is a greenhouse gas that's much more effective at trapping heat in the atmosphere than carbon dioxide.
A study by Johns Hopkins University and Scripps Institution of Oceanography found most of the pesticide’s nationwide emissions come from California, mainly Southern California.
“Other greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane are found everywhere across the U.S. On our sulfuryl fluoride map, only California lit up like a Christmas tree,” said environmental health professor Scot Miller of Johns Hopkins, one of the study’s authors.
The research team found 60-85% of sulfuryl fluoride emissions in the U.S. come from California, most of that from Southern California; Los Angeles, Orange, and San Diego counties.
Typically, tented homes in California are filled with high concentrations of the gaseous pesticide. After use, it’s vented into the air. Fumigating houses for termites is more common in California than elsewhere because drywood termites are very common here, and are more likely to spread throughout a home.
“The termites we have here are different from the termites we have in other states in the United States,” said atmospheric scientist Jens Mühle, with Scripps Oceanography. “Therefore, it seems like most applications and, therefore, most emissions are happening here.”
He adds that sulfuryl fluoride is not on California’s inventory of greenhouse emissions, meaning it hasn’t been measured as part of the problem. He said that should change.
“It is an example of how we can improve with atmospheric measurements the emission inventories, right? And at the end of the day, we really need to know that emission reductions are working and not just working on paper,” Mühle said.
He said the pesticide is several thousand times more potent a greenhouse gas than CO2.
