Demand for an end to pesticide spraying in Hastings
Petition launched against ‘probably carcinogenic’ pesticide being used in the town…
Hastings Green Party has launched a petition calling on East Sussex County Council (ESCC) to stop spraying verges, pavements and other areas in Hastings with glyphosate weedkiller.
In recent days, mini tractors have been seen spraying glyphosate in various areas of the town. In 2015, the International Agency for Research on Cancer – part of the World Health Organisation – concluded that glyphosate is ‘probably carcinogenic to humans’. In addition, says the Hastings Green Party, by killing weeds and flowers which are an important source of food for insects, it indirectly affects biodiversity through changes to ecosystems and food sources.
…potential danger to humans and animals, as well as having a major impact on insects.
Forty councils in the UK, including Lewes District Council, have banned the use of glyphosate and the local Green Party’s petition also calls on Hastings Borough Council to demand that ESCC stop spraying the pesticide in the town.
In addition, the petition asks both councils to make a commitment to the ‘No Mow May’ campaign run by conservation charity Plantlife, whereby some stretches of grass are left unmown in order to allow a wider range of plants to flower, providing food for a larger variety of insects. If roadside verges were left unmown until late July this would greatly increase biodiversity along the road network say the Greens.
Julia Hilton, spokesperson for Hastings Green Party, said: “The use of glyphosate in Hastings simply cannot be justified. It is a potential danger to humans and animals, as well as having a major impact on insects. At a time when we are facing massive loss of biodiversity, councils should be doing everything they can to encourage insects on the land they care for. Many Hastings residents have been in touch about this and want to see an immediate ban on the use of this dangerous pesticide.”
Hastings residents can sign the petition at tinyurl.com/glyphosatepetition.
For further reading on the subject you can click on the links below
https://www.iarc.fr/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/MonographVolume112-1.pdf
https://www.pan-uk.org/glyphosate/
https://www.localgov.co.uk/A-war-on-pesticides/47776
can someone tell me if glyphosate is in any way connected to the new so-called ‘safe’ version of D.D.T. which the E.U. granted a license for both commercial and industrial usage a number of years ago. i cannot remember exaactly this was but it does stick out in my mind because it was around the time period that the bumble bees had almost completely died off. the scientific community was baffled to why. In the end it was being refered to as Sudden Colony Collapse Syndrom (S.C.C.S.) which sounded and implied that it had been solved. It had not. im aware how daft it may sound but i cannot help thinking theyre connected. the horrrific consequences caused from using D.D.T. in the past to lift its ban can only be because of the potential profits to be made. yes it is made slightley differently but it seemed no different to me than switching from suger to sweetner in my coffee. to top it off it is now named something entirely different so it wont be associated to its past. which as a product to sell its not good P.R. but to me if it is truly safe now than while what theyre doing is not lying or hiding anything i think its worse from a morality angle. in fact id have more respct and trust for a streetmugger robbing me s i walked through town. at least they would be upfront and honest with their intentions. i know that may seem an extreme example. the way way both local and national goverment behave and use the same techniques as an american secound-hand car salesman in any and all public services. sorry, that turned into a bit of a rant. Okay, an epic rant. to be clear, i have not at any time been mugged.
Glyphosate from what I have been recently reading a serious threat to Bee’s and other wildlife. It is associated with products like “Round Up” and considered to be carcinogenic. There have been several campaigns and even court cases – in the States over using this stuff and Monsanto the massive chemical company is at the front of it.
There far more ecological safer ways to deal with weeds now. The problems is council’s see it as a cheap way to have some guy ride around on a quad bike just spraying that awful cocktail of chemicals around.