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Migratory birds poisoned by pesticides in south

Updated Sat. Apr. 21 2007 8:36 AM ET

 

Nicole Tomlinson, Special to CTV.ca

 

Little birds told Bridget Stutchbury their days may be numbered, and

the Canadian biology professor listened.

 

In her book Silence of the Songbirds, the Ontario resident and bird

enthusiast says some North American birds that spend their winters in

Latin America aren't making it back.

 

They're facing habitat loss, lack of food and chronic pesticide

poisoning in the tropics. When it's time to head north, many of these

migrants are too thin and sick to make the journey back to breed.

 

" Birds are being exposed to high levels of pesticides because they're

sprayed heavily and frequently, " Stutchbury said.

 

She explained that farmers in Latin America use pesticides like an

insurance policy: the chemicals are cheap and easy to get, so they use

them all the time, even if their crop is bug-free, to make sure it

stays that way.

 

" These chemicals are all neurotoxins. They make exposed birds and

humans dizzy, weak and short of breath, " she said.

 

This category of pesticides, organophosphates, doesn't stick around in

the body like DDT and other banned chemicals do, but they're still

dangerous. They're designed to kill fast, so they're actually more

harmful in the short-term.

 

" We've traded persistence for toxicity, " Stutchbury explained.

 

" The new pesticides don't stick around in the environment, but they're

nastier on the body. "

 

Gideon Forman, the Executive Director for the Canadian Association of

Physicians for the Environment, says that many Canadians use the same

kind of chemicals in their yards, and it's harming us.

 

" There are 60 pesticides in Canada that have been banned in other

Western countries because they're dangerous to the environment and to

human health, " he said.

 

A specific product 2,4-D, the most widely used herbicide in Canada,

has been banned in Denmark, Norway and Sweden.

 

A study last year by the Canadian Pediatric Society concluded that 2,4-

D, an active ingredient in products like Kilex and Turfbuilder Pro

with Weed Control is linked to cancer, neurological impairment and

reproductive problems.

 

The Ontario College of Family Physicians also concluded from their

research that children exposed to lawn and garden pesticides have a

higher risk of developing leukemia than those who aren't.

 

Health Canada even found 2,4-D in the semen of Ontario farmers.

 

" Even if you're not using pesticides, and your neighbour is, you're

being exposed. The chemicals go into the air, and they migrate to

rivers and lakes, into our drinking water, " Forman explained.

 

He thinks that municipalities across the country should ban pesticide

use. Some cities, like Halifax, Toronto, and Vancouver, have banned

the use of pesticides on lawns.

 

" In Ottawa, where it's still permitted, every location sampled on the

Rideau river contained traces of 2,4-D, " Forman said.

 

Stutchbury says that produce bombarded with pesticides in Latin

America is not only hurting Canada's songbirds; it's also winding up

on our dinner tables.

 

" When we buy food from these countries, we become part of a food chain

1000 miles away, " she said.

 

" Latin American produce, especially grapes, strawberries and beans, is

three times more likely to contain pesticides that violate

standards. "

 

Canadians can make sure that their meals are free of pesticides by

buying local and organic. For exotic fruits like bananas and

pineapples, Stutchbury says that buying certified organic imports will

help save the birds.

 

" Some people just worry about how their food affects them, but this is

damaging ecosystems that we depend on, " she explained.

 

" If I'm in the store and I see tomatoes from Mexico beside ones from

Canada, I buy the Canadian tomatoes because it's the right thing to

do. "

 

 

Don't know, don't care, don't talk, don't stare, don't know, don't care

We live in fear the end is near and we are easy to control

It's an orange alert