Osoyoos has stopped using Roundup, at least temporarily, as opposition to the use of the controversial herbicide has gathered steam in the community, leading town operations to explore other options.
The Town has been using Roundup (a broad-spectrum glyphosate-based herbicide) for weed and invasive species control, and dormant oils and insecticidal soap when spraying for aphids on plants and trees.
In a briefing to Town Council, the town’s operations services manager, Andrew McKillop, highlighted the “significant lobby within the community coming out against the use of the herbicide Roundup.”
As such McKillop said he has suspended the spraying of the well-known herbicide, which has been the subject of class-action lawsuits in the U.S. based on scientific studies suggesting links between the weed killer and cancer, specifically non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma.
German chemical company Bayer acquired Monsanto in 2018 and with it, Roundup. Since then, Bayer has paid out over $10 billion to settle tens of thousands of claims in the U.S. alone. In his presentation, McKillop noted that “the term Roundup is very controversial.”
He noted that as with any chemical application proper personal protective equipment (PPE) is used and “you could just be spraying water and the concern is still there,” because of the image the PPE presents.
Because of concerns expressed within the community, he said its use has been halted for more than two months while he researched the issue. In the meantime, the town is spraying a different herbicide called Clearview. He added that research shows Clearview to be a “much safer” product than Roundup.
“We’ve been using a product called Clearview, which we used in the past and works really well on puncturevine which is probably the number one thing we get complaints about from the community.”
McKillop said he has asked public works operators to use the tools they have, such as “weed whackers” to take an extra five minutes while on location to use the tool on the weeds, instead of spraying.
“We’ve been winning the battle over the years but with recent concerns, I’ve slowed down the use of it [Roundup] and done some research on what we could better do for this community in terms of pesticide use.”
Some communities have decided to forgo herbicides altogether, opting instead to just pull weeds by hand. “But if we go that route unfortunately this community will be overgrown pretty quick. There has to be, in my opinion, some pesticide use, it’s just what type we use,” McKillop said.
But not everyone is put off by the potential hazards of Roundup, with town Coun. Jim King saying: “I personally don’t have a problem with using Roundup in that respect because me [sic] as an individual person can go to the store and purchase it. You’ve got to be aware of the toxins in it but you can still use it.”
Mayor Sue McKortoff highlighted that if weeds along sidewalks aren’t sprayed they can cause the concrete to heave. She also notes that rocky areas and slopes that are difficult to reach may also require spraying.
A further report on herbicide use is expected sometime this fall.
