Monsanto's Roundup Herbicide Contaminates Danish Drinking Water

[Guest guest]

Time to emigrate Ole?

http://web.archive.org/web/20040506155317/www.mindfully.org/Pesticide/2003/Roundup-Danish-Water10may03.htm

Monsanto's Roundup Herbicide Contaminates Danish Drinking Water

POLITIKEN (Denmark) 10may03

 

 

 

 

 

 

Poisonous Spray [Roundup] on a Course Towards Drinking Water

by ANDERS LEGARTH SCHMIDTPolitiken 10may03

Denmark's most popular herbicide Roundup is polluting the underground water far more than previously thought. Agriculture uses yearly 800 tons of active glyphosate in herbicide. The Environment Minister is looking at taking steps to address this.

The Danish drinking water resources are under attack from an unexpected quarter. The chemical glyphosate that is in the popular herbicides Roundup and Touchdown is against all expectations sieving down through the soil and polluting the ground water at a rate of five times more than the allowed level for drinking water.

This has been shown from tests done by the Denmark and Greenland Geological Research Institution (DGGRI) in an as yet unpublished article.

Believed Bacteria broke down glyphosate

"When we spray glyphosate on the fields by the rules it has been shown that it is washed down into the upper ground water with a concentration of 0.54 micrograms per litre. This is very surprising, because we had previously believed that bacteria in the soil broke down the glyphosate before it reached the ground water."

It is the Environment Ministry that has given permission to use glyphosate - based on the producers [Monsanto's] own research.

Used against Twitch and Thistles

Farmers spray glyphosate on their fields after the harvest to keep the soil free of twitch and thistles. It had been earlier found in wells in Roskilde and Storstroms regions as well as the Copenhagen district council area. Critics say glyphosate causes cancer, while its defenders call it a wonder herbicide.

Professor Mogens Henze the head of the Institute for Environment and Resources at Denmark's Technical University, says that the consequence of the new knowledge is that water works in five to ten years will need to clean the water before Danes can drink it.

"The results show that glyphosate is polluting our drinking water. And unfortunately we have only seen the tip of the iceberg, because glyphosate and many other spray chemicals are on their way through the soil at this point in time. Politicians need to look at agriculture in relation to clean drinking water and decide what it is they are going to do." says Mogens Henze, who isn't blaming the farmers who use something that the authorities have allowed.

Use Doubled

Statistics from the Environment Ministry show that the use of glyphosate has doubled in the last five years. In 2001 800 tons was used and that made up a quarter of farmers total use of pesticides. This shows that glyphosate is the most used herbicide by farmers.

As a result of the new research from DGGRI the Environment Minister Hans Christian Schmidt is currently thinking about doing something about the use of glyphosate on Danish fields.

"It is simply not acceptable that this stuff is turning up in our groundwater in such a concentration so high over the acceptable level. If this is the case then we must react quickly" says the Environment Minister, who is awaiting a report from the Environment Ministry.

 

..

 

 

source: http://web.archive.org/web/20040506155317/http://politiken.dk/VisArtikel.sasp?PageID=269614 25may03Many thanks for sending this English translation to GM WATCH daily: http://web.archive.org/web/20040506155317/http://www.ngin.org.uk/

 

 

 

 

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[Guest guest]

There is a method of agriculture called “no-till.” 

Commercially, it’s a bastardization of a good concept used organically. 

In the good method, one builds up the soil with organic compost and then

eventually just plants without tilling, without disturbing the earth, except

for the introduction of the plant. 

  In the commercial version, there is no

plowing, or cultivating of the soil.  What very often happens is that one

sprays Round-up on acres and acres of field.  This kills off all the

vegetation.  Then one plants ones seed, perhaps genetically modified to be

resistant to Round-up. 

  All this happens in the spring.  This is

at a time when by killing off the vegetation, one exposes the ground to the

spring rains, thus washing away one’s soil.  Remember the purpose of the “organic”

method is to build up the soil.  Here it is to provide a bigger crop for the

farmer.  Oh, more profits for Monsanto as well.  In destroying the vegetation,

one poisons the soil, which destroys soil microorganisms.  It is the soil that

holds the rain in order to provide the plants with their nutrients.  The soil

microorganisms act synergistically with the roots of plants to get the

nutrients from the soil into the plant.  Without the microorganisms this does

not happen nearly as effectively.  Thus we then need to buy fertilizer, which

further pollutes the soil, but does feed the plant (probably the equivalent of

fast food).  The fertilizers act as a salt.  The soil is destroyed and one is

locked into buying fertilizer forever.  And Round-up. 

  One changes the natural cycles for a

commercial one. 

 

 

 

 

 

On Behalf Of Misty

Sunday, July 23, 2006 6:21

AM

Health and Healing; Armageddon

or New Age

 

Monsanto's Roundup Herbicide Contaminates Danish Drinking Water

 

 

 

 

 

 

Time to emigrate Ole?

http://web.archive.org/web/20040506155317/www.mindfully.org/Pesticide/2003/Roundup-Danish-Water10may03.htm

Monsanto's Roundup

Herbicide Contaminates

Danish Drinking Water

POLITIKEN (Denmark)

10may03

 

 

 

 

Poisonous Spray

[Roundup] on a

Course Towards Drinking Water

by ANDERS LEGARTH

SCHMIDT

Politiken 10may03

Denmark's

most popular herbicide Roundup is polluting the underground water far more

than previously thought. Agriculture uses yearly 800 tons of active

glyphosate in herbicide. The Environment Minister is looking at taking steps

to address this.

The

Danish drinking water resources are under attack from an unexpected quarter.

The chemical glyphosate that is in the popular herbicides Roundup and

Touchdown is against all expectations sieving down through the soil and

polluting the ground water at a rate of five times more than the allowed

level for drinking water.

This

has been shown from tests done by the Denmark and Greenland Geological

Research Institution (DGGRI) in an as yet unpublished article.

Believed Bacteria broke down glyphosate

" When

we spray glyphosate on the fields by the rules it has been shown that it is

washed down into the upper ground water with a concentration of 0.54

micrograms per litre. This is very surprising, because we had previously

believed that bacteria in the soil broke down the glyphosate before it

reached the ground water. "

It is the

Environment Ministry that has given permission to use glyphosate - based on

the producers [Monsanto's] own research.

Used against Twitch and Thistles

Farmers

spray glyphosate on their fields after the harvest to keep the soil free of

twitch and thistles. It had been earlier found in wells in Roskilde

and Storstroms regions as well as the Copenhagen

district council area. Critics say glyphosate causes cancer, while its

defenders call it a wonder herbicide.

Professor

Mogens Henze the head of the Institute for Environment and Resources at Denmark's Technical University,

says that the consequence of the new knowledge is that water works in five to

ten years will need to clean the water before Danes can drink it.

" The

results show that glyphosate is polluting our drinking water. And

unfortunately we have only seen the tip of the iceberg, because glyphosate

and many other spray chemicals are on their way through the soil at this

point in time. Politicians need to look at agriculture in relation to clean

drinking water and decide what it is they are going to do. " says Mogens

Henze, who isn't blaming the farmers who use something that the authorities

have allowed.

Use Doubled

Statistics

from the Environment Ministry show that the use of glyphosate has doubled in

the last five years. In 2001 800 tons was used and that made up a quarter of

farmers total use of pesticides. This shows that glyphosate is the most used

herbicide by farmers.

As a

result of the new research from DGGRI the Environment Minister Hans Christian

Schmidt is currently thinking about doing something about the use of

glyphosate on Danish fields.

" It

is simply not acceptable that this stuff is turning up in our groundwater in

such a concentration so high over the acceptable level. If this is the case

then we must react quickly " says the Environment Minister, who is

awaiting a report from the Environment Ministry.

 

 

..

 

 

 

 

 

 

source: http://web.archive.org/web/20040506155317/http://politiken.dk/VisArtikel.sasp?PageID=269614

25may03

Many thanks for sending this English translation to GM WATCH daily: http://web.archive.org/web/20040506155317/http://www.ngin.org.uk/

 

 

 

 

 

If

you have come to this page from an outside location click here to

get back to mindfully.org

Please see the Fair

Use Notice on the Homepage