The Bio Killer Glyphosate

[WaterBuffaloes23]

For Project Green Challenge

[exchemist]

3 hours ago, WaterBuffaloes23 said:

For Project Green Challenge

OK I see Project Green Challenge is a real thing for schools and colleges, so I won't accuse you of spamming the forum.

A couple of comments: 

- You need to get rid of the greengrocer's apostrophe in the first line, as it makes the ad look like the work of  crank. "Its" does not have an apostrophe. ("It's" is short for "it is".)

- The suggestion that glyphosate is a danger to human health is questionable at best. See this assessment by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in July of this year: https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/news/glyphosate-no-critical-areas-concern-data-gaps-identified.  Furthermore the WHO clarified its 2015 assessment a year later, here: https://www.chemistryworld.com/news/who-clarifies-glyphosate-risks/1010208.article.  

So your poster, at least as currently written, looks to me like unjustified scare-mongering. This is important, as overblown claims by environmental activists will eventually damage their credibility.  If you want to be listened to, you need to do your research and not exaggerate wildly.  

- You could perhaps consider a poster with a more positive message, stressing the benefits and ease of use of the natural options you mention. I think everyone understands that the less we spray artificial substances around the better, so domestic gardeners will be receptive to a message along those lines. But farmers can't mulch their way out of weed infestations, nor can they pull weeds out by hand.

 

 

 

 

Edited October 15, 2023 by exchemist

[John Cuthber]

We used to rely on mulching, hand weeding and "bio controls"- whatever they may be.
They weren't good enough. That's why we started using weedkillers.
Glyphosate may be carcinogenic, but so is alcohol and that doesn't stop people using it.
It's a risk/ benefit question.
Only presenting the risks is dishonest.

[mistermack]

Seventy years ago, there were butterflies everywhere. The downside was that their caterpillars would destroy my dad's garden.

He would fight a running battle with them, dusting everything with Derris Dust, which was cheap and effective. (DDT) 

I don't think it did us any harm, eating food that came from plants that were white with DDT. All seven of us kids are still here. 

But I miss the butterflies, and the skylarks overhead. 

[John Cuthber]

42 minutes ago, mistermack said:

Seventy years ago, there were butterflies everywhere. The downside was that their caterpillars would destroy my dad's garden.

He would fight a running battle with them, dusting everything with Derris Dust, which was cheap and effective. (DDT) 

I don't think it did us any harm, eating food that came from plants that were white with DDT. All seven of us kids are still here. 

But I miss the butterflies, and the skylarks overhead. 

Derris is not DDT.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Derris
It contains 
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotenone
Which is often up forward by environmentalists as "good".

"Soil Association standards allow organic farmers restricted use of seven nonsynthetic pesticides that have been approved on the basis of their origin, environmental impact and potential to persist as residues. They are copper ammonium carbonate; copper sulphate; copper oxychloride; sulphur; pyrethrum; soft soap and derris (rotenone)."
From 
https://www.soilassociation.org/media/4920/policy_report_2001_organic_farming_food_quality_human_health.pdf

It's associated with parkinsonism.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotenone#Parkinson's_disease

 

[mistermack]

Oh right. Derris dust was the only brand name I could remember, and with the initials DD I thought it was DDT. 

I can remember reading DDT on the list of ingredients of something dad was using, but obviously it wasn't that then. Unless they added it to Derris Dust as well.

I just looked up Derris Dust and you can still buy it in Australia. The price is a shocker though, about seventy five Aus dollars for a shaker. I'd rather keep the caterpillars. 

[TheVat]

There's been some scare-mongering here in the States over glyphosate in corn, given that researchers testing non-organic corn could not find detectable levels of glyphosate.  As a lawn treatment in "Roundup" I avoid it because it's so indiscriminate in what it kills.  I like a fairly natural and diverse range of plants in our groundcover.  We opt to yank and tug, in lieu of chemicals.  Keeps you limber.

12 hours ago, WaterBuffaloes23 said:

For Project Green Challenge

What specifically do you want to discuss?