PUBLIC SAFETY

Group says city is spraying toxic chemicals

By Noah Bruce

Is the city of Portland spraying dangerously toxic chemicals in the name of killing pesky weeds that grow between the cracks in sidewalks?

Will Everitt, Maine Field Director for the Toxics Action Center, says Round-Up, the herbicide used by the city, is a danger to citizens, especially those who are sensitive to chemicals, and young children, whose method of exploring the world through their sense of taste can get them in trouble.

Monsanto, the company that makes Round-Up, disputes any evidence that its product is harmful to people. However, the Journal of Pesticide Reform published by the Northwest Coalition for Pesticide Reform, a non-profit organization based in Eugene, Oregon, reports that glyphosate, the active ingredient in Round-Up, causes eye and skin irritation, headaches, nausea, numbness, and high blood pressure. Prolonged exposure, it says, can cause an increased risk of miscarriages, premature birth, and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

Peter Dewitt, public relations coordinator for Portland’s public works department, acknowledges that the city sprays Round-Up four times a year during the summer months, particularly on sidewalks and on traffic islands. However, he says the Environmental Protection Agency says the product is safe.

“Toxicity is usually measured in terms of its LD-50,” says Dewitt. “The higher the LD-50, the less toxic the substance is. According to the toxicology report from the EPA, anything above 2000 is categorized as non-toxic. Round-Up has an LD-50 of 4320 milligrams per kilogram. Table salt has an LD-50 of 3000, so table salt is considered more toxic than Round-Up.”

Dewitt says that the city respects requests not to spray Round-Up around the residence of a concerned person, but it then becomes the person’s responsibility to remove weeds.

Everitt supports using pesticides “only as a last resort,” and believes the city should attempt to control weeds through non-chemical means (like pulling them out) first. He says the state of Maine also recommends this approach but does not enforce the policy.

According to Everitt, Toxics Action Center is currently working to see that the town of Brunswick, Maine ceases the use of pesticides including Round-Up, and is beginning work on the issue in Portland. Everitt says the movement to cut the use of pesticides by cities is growing and cites Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Newton, Massachusetts as examples of municipalities that have a policy of using pesticides only as a last resort.