LOS ANGELES-Tests found dangerous levels of the compound iodide in groundwater near where an agricultural pesticide had been applied that is pending approval in California, according to a report completed in Florida, where the pesticide is already in use.

The report, which was circulated by environmental and farmworker advocacy groups seeking to stop the pesticide methyl iodide from being registered for use in California, also found high concentrations of the fumigant in the air near its application. Methyl iodide is included on California’s list of cancer-causing chemicals.

The findings “should be wake-up call that methyl iodide should not be registered here and that registration should be canceled in Florida and nationwide,” said Anne Katten, pesticide and workplace safety specialist for the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation.

Methyl iodide’s Tokyo-based manufacturer, Arysta LifeScience Corp., funded the pesticide safety study as a condition of the chemical’s approval for use on Florida farms.

Arysta business development chief Jeff Tweedy criticized the groups’ analysis of the data, saying the fumigant was not to blame for the high groundwater iodide levels and that the air concentrations were below levels tentatively approved by the California Department of Pesticide Regulations.

“They’re misrepresenting the product,” Tweedy said of the groups. Tweedy noted that tests taken before and after an application of the pesticide did not”show an increase