The San Diego County Board of Supervisors looks like it is feeling the pressure from the public about government’s continued use of Roundup and other pesticides that contain glyphosate, which is a noted carcinogen.
On Wednesday, Feb. 26, the Board directed the chief administrative officer to come up with a plan that has organic alternatives to herbicides and report back to them in 120 days.
This is definitely a good step. Supervisor Nathan Fletcher, who – along with Dianne Jacob – have proposed a ban of the weedkiller of Roundup. Fletcher called for killing weeds “in the most responsible way,” without using toxic chemicals.
Jacob hopes San Diego County will join the cities of Encinitas, Carlsbad, Napa and Sonoma, along with Los Angeles County, which have banned using glyphosate, because “this is the right thing to do.”
Fletcher and Jacob would also like the county to review the use of other hazardous chemicals. Four county departments use glyphosate: Agriculture, Weights & Measurements, Parks and Recreation, General Services and Public Works. CBS8
We at the OB Rag wish them well – and to get on with it. Readers here know that we have been supporting local residents who created “Non-Toxic San Diego” and pushed for the banning of Roundup in local parks. Currently, Roundup is being used at city parks, playgrounds, beaches. Disgust with its use at Point Loma Natural Park led some locals to kick-start the campaign.
Anne Jackson Hefti started out by describing how she came about getting involved; she and a friend were walking their dogs at Sunset Cliffs Natural Park and came across a work crew spraying Roundup. The men had no masks or other protective gear and the women were allowed to walk through the sprayed area just minutes after their work. Later, Anne’s dog became sick – and she started researching Roundup and its component glyphosate.
She was so shocked by what she found that she helped to found the group Non Toxic San Diego. (Much of the material the group handed out was from www.beyondpesticides.org )
See these:
- San Diego City Parks Department Announces Pilot Project of 3 Organic Parks – One at Liberty Station – Nov., 2019
- The Widder Curry Warns: Poisonous Round-Up Used in Coastal Habitat at Dog Beach Where Restoration Event Planned – July 2019
- Americans Are Pressuring EPA to Ban Round-Up While City of San Diego Still Uses It on Beaches, Playgrounds and Parks – July 2019
- OB Town Council Gets Prepped on RoundUp – May 2019
- Monsanto Ordered to Pay $2 Billion to California Victims for Cancer Caused by Roundup – May 2019
- Ocean Beach Town Council’s Letter to Mayor In Support of Non Toxic San Diego – June 2019
- Your Weedkiller Might Kill You – Sept. 2015
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By my reckoning, this report is due in a couple of days. An interesting counterpoint to the recent permanent injunction delivered against the State of California denying the requirement that the stuff be labeled as a carcinogen. Meanwhile, the personal injury lawsuits have proliferated (all being appealed as we speak).
BUT . . . as Frank explained in the article: label or no label, San Diego is going to soon have the information put in front of the City Council.