ECOsmarte blog

What do you do when the seemingly best solution...is toxic?

Arundo is the name of a giant cane-type of plant that has invaded large areas of the Ventura River (California) in the last 10 - 15 years. Arundo is invasive, non-native, and chokes out other native plants, wrecking havoc with the ecosystem. Local plant, animal, bird and insect species are all adversely impacted. Arundo is highly flammable and a huge water user - the plants can grow up to 3 inches per day.

Removal of the arundo is critical to restoring the balance. To accomplish this task, the Ventura County Watershed Protection District is using a version of "Roundup" for use near water called "Rodeo". (Okay, someone has to say it - what's with the cowboy names for pesticides?? Geez.) The long term goals are to save water, reduce flooding and fire hazards, and restore the native habitat of the river.

Herbicides have consequences. The half-life of Glyphosate, the active ingredient in Rodeo, ranges from 35 - 63 days in water. The half-life of Glyphosate in soil ranges from 3 - 249 days, and residues of the chemical have been found in treated areas up to one year later.

The USDA and the forest service information sheet tells us that Glyphosate breaks down from micro-organisms in soil and does not bio-accumulate in fish or release back into water moving through soil very easily. That all sounds good. They tell us that the amounts of the chemical that get into the water would be so small, they wouldn't be a problem. Of course, the date of that paper is 1997. That's a little scary.

Well...the doctor of environmental medicine in town who treats extremely chemically sensitive people, trying to help them stay healthy and lead normal lives, disagrees. So do the chemically sensitive people, some of whom I have talked to. They are up in arms about it.

The restoration of the Ventura River watershed necessarily involves removal of the arundo, and it's a tough call. There have been discussions of different solutions, straight manpower, bringing in goats to graze on the plants, and planned burns, which would all cost more or would take too long (the powers that be concluded). There is a time frame here, because the removal of the silt-filled 59 year old Matilija dam is scheduled to begin in 2009, and the silt needs a clear passage down the riverbed to the ocean. Everything is connected.

Marin County seems to be having a similar issue, I see. I was surprised to find this: "The National Audubon Society, whose mission is 'to conserve and restore natural ecosystems … for the benefit of humanity and the earth’s biological diversity,' refers to glyphosate as a 'strikingly benign herbicide.'" Sounds like a bit of an oxymoron to me - benign herbicide. Certainly not benign to the plants. But perhaps not nearly as toxic to the environment as many other herbicides.

So the arundo removal continues...poisons are being sprayed on the problem areas. Meanwhile, we have some active environmentalists here who plan on checking the downstream water quality; the "StreamTeam". Let's hope that nasty Glyphosate doesn't get into the drinking water.

One more reason to have a good whole house water filtration system, eh?