SACRAMENTO, CA - There are strict new rules taking effect for California farmers who use a pesticide that helps crops grow.
Chloropicrin is a fumigant injected into the ground before crops are planted.
It's most widely used on strawberries, peppers, tomatoes and almond orchards.
The pesticide kills ingredients in the soil that can destroy a crop.
It's been used for 40 years in California, and heavily here in the San Joaquin Valley.
But these new restrictions will limit its use dramatically and farmers will only be able to use the pesticide in up to 40 acres in one day.
That's a reduction of nearly 75 percent. Also, it must be used away from people.
"It's been used for years like when you do a house, when you're getting rid of the termites in your house, it's really reactive to your eyes. so it's a warming agent, so its used in odd places, so it will give you eye irritation very quickly," said Bill Leahy, California Dept. of Pesticide Regulation.
Chloropicrin not only causes eye irritation but also coughing and headaches.