{"id":446343,"date":"2026-08-28T18:14:31","date_gmt":"2026-08-28T18:14:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/446343\/"},"modified":"2026-08-28T18:14:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T18:14:31","slug":"ladera-ranch-cancer-cases-spark-anti-pesticide-activism-in-orange-county-orange-county-register","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/446343\/","title":{"rendered":"Ladera Ranch cancer cases spark anti-pesticide activism in Orange County \u2013 Orange County Register"},"content":{"rendered":"

An anti-pesticide movement inspired by the emergence of rare cancer cases in Ladera Ranch<\/a> is beginning to spread throughout Orange County and beyond \u2014 and already enjoying some success.<\/p>\n

Activist movements have formed in Dana Point, Rancho Mission Viejo and San Juan Capistrano, and some in Aliso Viejo are using the current momentum to revive a campaign they\u2019d fought in 2024. On Instagram, a series of new accounts have popped up: Regenerate OC<\/a>, San Clemente Goes Organic<\/a>, Toxic Free Newport Beach<\/a>, RMV (Rancho Mission Viejo) Spray Notices<\/a> and Toxin Free Temecula<\/a>, as well as several from Ladera Ranch, including Ladera Health Watch<\/a> and Ladera Goes Organic<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Carolyn McCuan, who founded the group Toxic-Free OC in 2022, said she\u2019s seen a spike in local interest since the Ladera Ranch cancer cases emerged. \u201cWe have been really busy,\u201d she said. She\u2019s heard from concerned community members in Mission Viejo, Dana Point and Aliso Viejo, among others.<\/p>\n

Some cities are taking action. On Tuesday, Aug. 25, Newport Beach city councilmembers unanimously voted to discontinue synthetic herbicide use on city athletic fields, and San Clemente officials have taken steps to tighten<\/a> the city\u2019s pesticide policy.<\/p>\n

\"LilyLily Eichert with her son Sebastian at Pines Park in Dana Point on Wednesday, August 26, 2026. Sebastian developed a chronic cough after the family moved to Dana Point, which his doctor diagnosed as asthma and blamed on environmental exposure. (Photo by Paul Bersebach, Orange County Register\/SCNG)<\/p>\n

Dana Point mom Lily Eichert said what\u2019s happening in Ladera Ranch \u201cgot people thinking.\u201d Eichert\u2019s 10-year-old son spends a lot of time outside, and, after they moved to the beach community four years ago, he developed a chronic cough. His pediatrician diagnosed him with asthma and blamed environmental exposure.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen the Ladera thing happened, I was like, well, let me just see what\u2019s going on at the park near our house,\u201d Eichert said. She requested pesticide spray records for nearby Pines Park, but was told that the private landscaping company \u2014 not the city \u2014 maintains those records.<\/p>\n

\"AmandaAmanda Quintanilla, a mother and registered nurse, adds her voice to concerns about the use of toxic chemicals for landscaping and pest control purposes on Capistrano Unified School District campuses, while a slide shows the district\u2019s historic use of various types of chemicals, during a school board meeting at the district offices in San Juan Capistrano on Thursday, August 13, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Antenore, Orange County Register\/SCNG)<\/p>\n

Eichert isn\u2019t the only one troubled by potential pesticide spray in Dana Point. There\u2019s \u201ca group of ragtag mothers who are concerned for their children and their health,\u201d she said. \u201cEveryone\u2019s just like, whatever we have to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Activists are mobilizing in Aliso Viejo as well. McCuan founded Toxic-Free OC after she said she experienced herbicide poisoning in Aliso Viejo<\/a>. After moving to the city in 2020, she said her energy levels dipped, rashes broke out on her face and arms, and she experienced severe brain fog.<\/p>\n

\"MembersMembers of Toxic-Free OC, a grassroots environmental organization, who live adjacent to Canyon View Park in Aliso Viejo, pose for a photo at the entrance to the park on Wednesday, April 17, 2024. They are from left: Zulma Alvarez, Melissa Christian, with her dog, Dakota, Tracy Blum, Carolyn McCuan, her husband, Charles, and children Caden 3, and Caylee, 5, Christine Hurden, and Brendan Brudevold. Members of the group have reported a series of debilitating illnesses as well as their pets due to their proximity to the park over the past few years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register\/SCNG)<\/p>\n

One morning in June 2023, she couldn\u2019t speak or \u201ceven muster up the energy to walk to the bathroom,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

An environmental toxins test showed that she\u2019d had high exposure to herbicides. Around that time, she learned that the weed killer Cheetah Pro was being sprayed at nearby Canyon View Park. McCuan pushed for pesticide reform in Aliso Viejo, but when she didn\u2019t see significant change, she moved her family to San Juan Capistrano.<\/p>\n

But since news broke about the Ladera Ranch cases, the movement in Aliso Viejo has been revived, McCuan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been at this for about two-and-a-half years,\u201d said Melissa Christian, an Aliso Viejo resident who\u2019s campaigned for pesticide reform with Toxic-Free OC. \u201cThe Ladera issue has really reignited what we\u2019ve been doing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"AA man walks his dogs through Canyon View Park in Aliso Viejo, on Wednesday, April 17, 2024. A grassroots environmental organization called, Toxic-Free OC, made up of residents who live adjacent to the park, are trying to make the park safer environmentally. Members of the group have reported a series of debilitating illnesses as well as their pets due to their proximity to the park over the past few years. (Photo by Mark Rightmire, Orange County Register\/SCNG)<\/p>\n

At an Aug. 10 meeting of the Aliso Viejo Community Association, which is the HOA for most of Aliso Viejo, about 10 residents asked the association to adopt an organic policy, and some referenced the cancer cases in Ladera Ranch, according to an attendee.<\/p>\n

In an email, AVCA General Manager Josh Hodosh said AVCA \u201cis continually evaluating and refining\u201d its pest management program and \u201cserves as a true model for Orange County in responsible landscape management.\u201d AVCA\u2019s maintenance program focuses on \u201cdrastic reduction and preventing weeds from germinating,\u201d and the association this summer achieved a full year without the use of \u201cpost-emergent pesticides,\u201d Hodosh said.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a terrible thing that\u2019s happened to those families,\u201d Christian said, referencing the rare cases of Ewing sarcoma diagnosed in young people in Ladera Ranch. \u201cBut I\u2019m really glad that everybody is thinking about this more deeply than maybe they were before.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Birds,Birds, including a great blue heron, left, and an egret, right, perch in the San Juan Creek riverbed, where advocacy has led to the cessation of pesticide and herbicide use by OC Public Works, and has led to the return of vegetation and wildlife, in San Juan Capistrano on Saturday, August 22, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Antenore, Orange County Register\/SCNG)
\nCreek Team OC expands<\/p>\n

Creek Team OC, a grassroots environmental activist group dedicated to protecting Orange County waterways from herbicide spraying, also has seen growing interest in its cause because of what\u2019s happening in Ladera Ranch.<\/a><\/p>\n

Creek Team emerged in February after its founder, Brent Linas, noticed there was no foliage along his running path around San Juan Creek. He met with representatives from the Orange County Public Works department to inquire about pesticide spraying in the creek, but said he was met with hostility.<\/p>\n

In response, he launched a campaign pushing for an end to pesticide spraying in the creek. The group\u2019s Instagram page \u201ctook off like wildfire,\u201d Linas said. It now has more than 27,000 followers.<\/p>\n

Soon, he and two other advocates, Bethany Nelms and Robert Beard, began advocating for reduced pesticide spraying throughout Orange County. Recently, Linas traveled to Sacramento to attend a California Assembly hearing on the state\u2019s pesticide program.<\/p>\n

The Ladera Ranch cancer cases have added fuel to that fire, Nelms said.<\/p>\n

Her next big project is starting Creek Teens, a group geared toward teenagers interested in learning more about and advocating for the health of local waterways. The group also will help coach young people on how to make their voices heard, such as speaking at city council meetings. She\u2019s hosting the Creek Teens\u2019 first meet-up soon for about a dozen kids ages 12 to 15.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf the kids want to get more involved, we want to show them how to do that,\u201d Nelms said.<\/p>\n

\"BrentBrent Linas, one of the members of Creek Team OC, which advocates for a continued cessation of pesticide and herbicide use in San Juan Creek and Trabuco Creek, checks on some of the vegetation that has returned to the creek bed following a halt of chemical spraying by OC Public Works last July, in San Juan Capistrano on Saturday, August 22, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Antenore, Orange County Register\/SCNG)
\nBroken promises<\/p>\n

But advocates say they face an uphill battle. Even in communities that already have established organics-first policies, some are not keeping their promises.<\/p>\n

McCuan and her family moved to San Juan Capistrano largely because of the city\u2019s organics-first policy, which prioritizes mechanical foliage removal before treatment. If that fails, organic products can be applied. And if that fails, synthetic pesticides can be used as a last resort.<\/p>\n

But soon after she moved, she said a public records request revealed that San Juan Capistrano parks were being sprayed with Roundup, a weed-control product that contains glyphosate, a chemical linked to cancer<\/a>\u00a0as recently as September 2025.<\/p>\n

When she found out about the spraying, \u201cI was speechless,\u201d McCuan said. She said she contacted the Public Works Department, and within months, it stopped its contractors from using Roundup.<\/p>\n

In a letter sent to a local community group inquiring about the city\u2019s use of pesticides, City Manager Benjamin Siegel acknowledged that although San Juan Capistrano\u2019s pest management program does not prohibit pesticide use, recordkeeping has been \u201cinconsistent,\u201d and a review found that the program \u201chas not been applied consistently at City-maintained areas.\u201d<\/p>\n

In June 2025, Siegel said, the City Council awarded a new landscape maintenance contract that incorporated the city\u2019s pest management program.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince the contract was approved, City staff has worked with the contractor to significantly limit pesticide use,\u201d Siegel wrote. \u201cThe City\u2019s review highlighted the need for improved communication and coordination.\u201d He said the City Manager\u2019s Office and the Public Works Department would work together to \u201cdevelop improved internal systems for consistent documentation and reporting.\u201d<\/p>\n

Irvine, which is credited with implementing the county\u2019s first organic policy in 2016, also has recently increased its nonorganic pesticide use. In 2024, the city of Irvine reported using approximately 3 ounces of Roundup in city parks and open spaces, but in 2025 more than 1,500 ounces were sprayed.<\/p>\n

In an email, public information officer Linda Fontes said that while Irvine \u201ccontinues to take an organics-first approach for City facilities and parks,\u201d the city\u2019s pest management program was updated in March 2024 \u201cto offer some exceptions for open space areas.\u201d This modification allowed for the use of glyphosate to eliminate \u201chard-to-eradicate species\u201d such as the invasive artichoke thistle in Quail Hill and to prepare sites for habitat restoration, \u201cwhich ultimately aids in our wildfire mitigation,\u201d Fontes said.<\/p>\n

While the amounts are small, residents who believe Irvine is all-organic are being misled, McCuan said. Irvine has been held up as an example for what to do in other communities, including Ladera Ranch.<\/p>\n

\u201cMost people are still under the impression that Irvine is completely organic,\u201d McCuan said. \u201cWhat we see is a slippery slope where you reintroduce it, and then over the years, it just becomes more and more used because it\u2019s easier.\u201d<\/p>\n

Pesticide regulation is increasingly being left to citizens, Linas said.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo one\u2019s coming to the rescue,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re going to have to deal with this ourselves.\u201d<\/p>\n

A patchwork of policies<\/p>\n

Part of the struggle to fight pesticides is the patchwork of agencies responsible for applying pesticides \u2014 HOAs, school districts, cities and counties may have jurisdiction over different areas within a specific region.<\/p>\n

In Ladera Ranch, it\u2019s an HOA. The Ladera Ranch Maintenance Corp., or LARMAC, has come under scrutiny for its pesticide spraying. Since news about the cancer cases has emerged, Nelms said, people have been asking Creek Team how they can convince their HOAs to stop spraying pesticides.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve had, gosh, I mean, dozens upon dozens of people reach out to us and say, \u2018Who do I talk to?\u2019 \u201d Nelms said. \u201cThis thing has just really taken off in such an unbelievable way.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the battle is just beginning, she said. In Orange County, there are nearly 5,000 HOAs. \u201cThat\u2019s 5,000 individual campaigns and asks to move away from synthetic herbicide,\u201d Nelms said.<\/p>\n

But even when cities eschew pesticide use, other entities within them might embrace nonorganic methods.<\/p>\n

Though San Juan Capistrano adopted an organics-first policy in 2017<\/a>, records show that on Capistrano Unified School District campuses, landscapers were spraying the herbicide Cheetah Pro, which contains glufosinate-ammonium, during the previous school year.<\/p>\n

Gulfosinate-ammonium is the same chemical present in Lifeline, which raised alarm in Ladera Ranch and sparked a Change.org petition<\/a> calling for a ban that racked up nearly 5,000 signatures.<\/p>\n

In an email to families, CUSD Chief Communications and Public Engagement Officer Ryan Burris said the district would implement a 60-day pause on maintenance products and weed spray applications in response to community members who raised \u201cthoughtful questions about the landscape maintenance products used within our neighborhoods and shared spaces.\u201d<\/p>\n

During the pause, the district will \u201cevaluate whether newer or lower-risk alternatives are available\u201d to \u201creduce unnecessary chemical exposure,\u201d Burris wrote. District staff will recommend to the Board of Trustees which products should remain, which should be replaced, whether chemical use can be otherwise reduced, and how to improve the district\u2019s pest management policy.<\/p>\n

At its Aug. 13 meeting, community members requested that the temporary pause be made permanent. The Board of Trustees said the pause may continue beyond 60 days and established that there would be an annual review of approved pesticides and herbicides.<\/p>\n

\"JackieJackie French, a Ladera Ranch resident and attorney who leads Ladera Health Watch, a community advocacy group investigating a potential cluster of Ewing sarcoma, a rare bone and soft-tissue cancer affecting local children, thanks members of the Capistrano Unified School District board for taking this issue seriously and for pausing the use of toxic chemicals on campuses during a board meeting at the district offices in San Juan Capistrano on Thursday, August 13, 2026. (Photo by Jeff Antenore, Orange County Register\/SCNG)<\/p>\n

Jackie French, a Ladera Ranch advocate behind the group Ladera Health Watch, said CUSD\u2019s response was \u201crefreshing.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like we\u2019re all on the same page and we all want the children to be safe,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

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