The Old Broad Questions Why the City Is Using ‘Round-Up’ on Ocean Beach and Point Loma Beaches, Parks and Playgrounds

By Judi Curry

Are you safe in the park? At Sunset Cliffs Natural Park? Robb Field; Dusty Rhodes? Dog Beach? Dog Park? Neighborhood playgrounds?

Have you seen many bees this spring?  Have you seen as many birds this spring?  Do people you know have cancer?  Do you know dogs and cats that are being diagnosed with cancer? Do you have any idea what might be the cause?

Do you know what the ingredients are to kill weeds? Do you know what a “carcinogen” is?  Do you know what “Glyphosate” is and what products contain it?  Do you know what the directions are for using products with glyphosate in them?

Did you know that here in our own “backyard” that glyphosate is being sprayed and there are no signs indicating that a spray has just taken place? That you might be walking – or your dog might be walking – on freshly sprayed ground covered with a known carcinogen.  Do you know that you – or your dog – might be bringing that poison into your car; into your house; into your kitchen with every step that you take.

Did you know that just before Easter, before you had the Easter egg hunt or the Easter picnic that the city – and/or its contractor sprayed glyphosate on that very grass that you sat on; laid down on; ate on and there were no signs indicating that had been done. Do you know that you were exposed to one of the most dangerous carcinogen’s and you were not told?

Did you know that there are over 9000 lawsuits pending against the manufactures of glyphosate-based herbicides because it causes Non Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.  Did you know that glyphosate is a proven endocrine disrupter? That it can cause birth defects, sterility, infertility, sex hormone changes, developmental delays, shortened gestation and even miscarriage.  I wonder if you knew that it is a “patented antibiotic”? Do you know what that means?  It is absorbed through drift or contact and can destroy beneficial bacterial in our bodies and weaken the immune system.  It can also disrupt hormones, which prevent addiction, depression, mental illness and acts of violence.

Do you need to hear more? Because there is a lot more to tell you – fatty liver disease, lower IQ, mental disorders, dementia, Alzheimer’s, autism, migraines, etc. etc. etc.

The name that we all know that causes these horrific ailments is “Round-up”.  Round-up is banned in almost every other country except ours.

Why?  Is Monsanto giving that much money to our representatives so that they won’t ban it?

They have just recently sold the business to Bayer, and, interestingly enough the sale was approved by the DOJ.  It was a $62.5 BILLION dollar deal.  The deal was approved followed the European Union approval in March and a “productive” meeting between Bayer and Trump in January.  It is the biggest buy-out on record and the largest deal ever by a German company.

So what is the purpose of this article? It is primarily to make all of us aware of just how devastating glyphosate can be.  Sure, “Round Up” is the brand name the insecticide, but other companies use it in their own products.

Work crews at Sunset Cliffs Natural Park.

I met with Anne Jackson Hefti this afternoon re: this problem.  She, and another woman, were walking their dogs along Sunset Cliffs Park on February 7, 2019 and while walking “Bear” noticed that there were men spraying the weeds in the area.

There were no signs that she could see; no one said anything to her; and she asked the men if they could wait until she passed for them to continue spraying.  They did not, and both she,  Bear and the other dog walker got a healthy dose of the insecticide.  (It should be pointed out that on the label of the product clearly states “ . . . do not apply this product in a way that will contact workers or other persons, either directly or through drift.  Only protected handlers maybe in the area during application.” )

When she asked them what they were spraying they said “Ranger Pro”, which, she found out, has glyphosate as the main ingredient.  They were, in fact, in the “spray zone” and the contractors did not stop spraying as  it continued to drift in the wind.  What they did, in fact, was a Federal violation.

When Anne arrived home she had a terrible headache, and it took a few days before she was rid of the pain.  But alas, Bear was not so fortunate.

As the days passed, Anne realized that her dog seemed to be tired; didn’t wag his tail, and it was hard for him to move.

In desperation she took him to the Vet only to find that his blood showed a high alkaline content and he was anemic. These results were new to the dog because he had been in great health prior to this walk.  The Vet prescribed some medicines that should even things out – but in a week he was worse.

Anne took him to another vet, who, upon examination, discovered a large growth in his mouth and a mass on his spleen.  It was decided that Bear would have surgery to remove the growth in his mouth the following Wednesday, but mother nature had different plans. The growth exploded and he was rushed to an emergency hospital for emergency treatment.

Bear, Anne’s dog.

Currently Bear is on his “death bed”, and the feeling is that the insecticide brought on his ailment. After all, he nibbled the grass; he rolled in it; and he brought it home with him where in all probability he transferred it to his sleeping quarters.

As Anne did more investigation, she found out that this very same spray was being used at Dusty Rhodes, Robb Field, Dog Beach, SCNP, playgrounds,  Shelter Island, and Spanish Landing.  (She is investigating the use of the spray in Coronado, Chula Vista, Imperial Beach and National City but has not received the reports yet.)

And what is even scarier was when she was at Shelter Island on April 9 there were signs posted saying that spraying was going to begin on April 10 and 11.  As she started walking back to her car, the pesticide employee rolled up in his car, got out, and started spraying a DAY EARLIER THAN THE SIGNS POSTED.

This is not acceptable.  Research shows that even trace amounts of the pesticides are causing illness.  It is also of concern to find out that the spraying is outsourced to contractors and is NOT supervised.  We in San Diego are outdoors a great deal. That is our life.  What is happening is akin to a death warrant for every living creature, be it man or animal, that is outside.

Anne decided that something needs to be done about this terrible situation.  She started a program entitled, “Campaign Non-Toxic San Diego” with the express purpose of coming up with ways to rid our area of unwanted plants/weeds without poisoning the entire community.

She is suggesting that if liquid must be used to find something that will not cause harm to the environment.  Some people use a mixture of vinegar, dish soap, and water.  There are different methods available to use a harmless – at least to us – pesticide.

She and her group of advocates, which includes the Sierra Club, Surfrider, Save the Monarch Butterfly, and more, suggest educating people to plan for the future.  Why not use goats to rid the areas of evasive plants. Why not get the Boy Scouts, classrooms, Volunteers to learn how to recognize the unwanted plants and pull them out instead of spraying them with poison.

There are already areas in California that subscribe to a non-toxic method of planting.  Just up the road in Irvine there is a group that is called “Non-Toxic Irvine” that does just what Anne and her group is proposing.

And Irvine is not the only place: Burbank Unified School District has banned the use of week killer like Roundup; Carlsbad has adopted an organic pesticide policy; Costa Mesa has an “Organics First” policy; Encinitas, Laguna Hills, Lodi, Malibu, and San Juan Capistrano all have policies that restrict the use of pesticides. The entire County of Marin stopped using glyphosate in 2015; Novato, a neighbor to Marin has also stopped using it.

Why then, can’t San Diego also the use of glyphosate?

A few days ago I posted a brief article explaining in less detail the problem with glyphosate. In it I gave names and comments to use when writing to these elected officials.  Many of you wrote back to me and told me it was a very simple thing to do; just highlight the names and paste it in your URL. In the subject line put “ Campaign Non Toxic San Diego.”

Time is of the essence.  Yesterday the word came out that the water that we are drinking is laden with poisons – from pesticides; from plastics; from prescription drugs, etc.  It has to stop before it is too late.  The scientists are saying that we only have 12 years to rectify our environment.  That is not a very long time.

Anne and her committee could use some help in getting the word out; she could use some help in cleaning up the environment.  Have a few minutes?  Have some questions?  Why not write to her and ask her what you can do.  She can put you on a mailing list and let you know what the next step should be, or what the group will be doing next.

She said it would alright to give you her address:  It is annejacksonHefti@gmail.com.  The subject is “campaign non toxic san diego.”  Please, people.  Before it is too late for my grandchildren, your children; your animals; for the entire planet.  It’s in our hands. We better do something quick. The days and hours of procrastination are over.  Our ancestors will thank us.