From sals@rain.org Thu Apr 8 00:00:36 1999 Date: Wed, 7 Apr 1999 10:09:25 -0700 From: Sal To: sanet-mg@shasta.ces.ncsu.edu, AGRISYNERGY@MAELSTROM.STJOHNS.EDU Subject: Fw: GLYPHOSATE DANGERS (as in Roundup herbicide) [ The following text is in the "iso-8859-1" character set. ] [ Your display is set for the "US-ASCII" character set. ] [ Some characters may be displayed incorrectly. ] ----- Original Message ----- From: To: Sent: Wednesday, April 07, 1999 9:03 AM Subject: GLYPHOSATE DANGERS (as in Roundup herbicide) > from New Scientist (UK) > > CANCER THREAT FROM GLYPHOSATE > > New Scientist says researchers in Sweden have linked pesticides to one of the > most rapidly increasing cancers in the Western world, non-Hodgkins lymphoma - > which has risen by 73% in the USA since 1973. This, says the journal, is > probably caused by several commonly used crop sprays. > > The Lund University Hospital has found that Swedish sufferers of the disease > were 2.7 times more likely to have been exposed to the herbicide MCPA than > healthy people. "MCPA, which is used on grain crops, is sold as Target by the > Swiss firm Novartis," says the journal. > > "The patients were also 2.3 times more likely to have had contact with > glyphosate." > > "Use of [glyphosate] sold as Round-Up by the US firm Monsanto, is expected to > rocket with the introduction of crops such as Roundup-Ready soya beans that > are genetically modified to resist glyphosate. The researchers suggest that > the chemicals have suppressed the patients' immunity, allowing viruses such as > Epstein-Barr to trigger cancer." > > The report, on page 23 of New Scientist is by Fred Pearce and Debora > Mackenzie > > PESTICIDE RAIN > > The rain over Europe contains illegal quantities of pesticide - FOL Today Rain > falling over Europe contains such high levels of pesticide dissolved in it, > that it would be illegal to supply it as drinking water, says this week's > reporting Swiss work. > > Common cancers may well be caused by pesticides, says other research, from > Sweden. These reports help to explain why politicians are so keen to impose > tax on the use of pesticides - it would be a popular tax with a vast majority > of the public. > > Studies in Switzerland, says New Scientist, have found toxic levels of > atrazine, alachlor and other commonly used crop sprays in rain. A chemistfrom > the Swiss Federal Institute for Environmental Science and Technology, Stephan > Müller, says that drinking water standards for such chemicals are regularly > exceeded in rain. > > The chemicals appear to have evaporated from fields and become part of the > clouds. In the first minutes of a rain shower, the rain can contain far more > than the limit of 100 nanograms/litre of any particular pesticide that's > permitted in drinking water. > > One sample of rainfall contained 4,000 nanograms per litre of 2,4D; another > contained around 900 nanograms of atrazine per litre. > > The highest concentrations appear in the first rainfall after a long dry > period, especially when local fields have been sprayed. > > ---- > For instructions on joining, leaving, or otherwise using the Ban-GEF list, send > email to Ban-GEF@lists.txinfinet.com with HELP in the SUBJECT line. > ---- > > Date: Wed, 07 Apr 1999 09:25:27 +0000 > From: Jon r > Subject: B-GE: GLYPHOSATE DANGERS > > > -- > http://www.greenbuilder.com > modem: 512.288.3903 > -- > Green Building Professionals Directory at > http://www.greenbuilder.com/directory/ To Unsubscribe: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with the command "unsubscribe sanet-mg". To Subscribe to Digest: Email majordomo@ces.ncsu.edu with the command "subscribe sanet-mg-digest". All messages to sanet-mg are archived at: http://www.sare.org/san/htdocs/hypermail