Here we go again! So once again, a few of the monied interests of Erieau, both American and Canadian, have taken upon themselves to pollute Rondeau Bay with toxic, Diquat Dibromide aka (Reward & Reglone). Their so called reward is to destroy the near shore aquatic ecosystem which interferes with their boating pleasures. These days, Diquat is detected regularly in the Cedar Springs water plant due to the annual application by a few Erieau, bayside residents. So, Diquat has been well studied and is recommended for agricultural ponds and small lakes where milfoil had covered the surface. Rondeau Bay is not a private lake. Worse yet, it accumulates in the bottom sediments so that every time its used, your bay becomes more of a toxic waste dump, unless of course, you dont touch the bottom. Symptoms of Diquat poisoning include: Burning pain in mouth, throat, chest, and upper abdomen. - Pulmonary edema, pancreatitis, and renal injury. - Diarrhea, giddiness, headache, fever, myalgia, lethargy, and coma. - Neurologic toxicity: headache; confusion, excitement, mania, disorientation, emotional lability; depression, stupor, coma, respiratory failure, often without convulsions. Thats why it has a Jolly Roger sporting the label. Diquat is not degraded by microbes. When applied to a waterbody, diquat binds with the organic matter in the sediment indefinitely. It does not degrade and will accumulate in the sediments Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Diquat Chemical Fact, Sheet January 2012 Persistence: Typical half-life is 1000 d. Syngenta MSDS Reward So, what used to be the base of the near shore aquatic ecosystem along Erieau is now a toxic dead zone. Speaking with one of the residents who knew of the intentional pollution, I was told that it was cheaper than the alternative. Hmmm. Perhaps they hadnt considered not polluting the Bay. Or maybe, some other alternative?...Hmmm. I was also told that if diquat hadnt been poured into Rondeau Bay, far worse chemicals! would have been used by people from the States. Oooh Scary!! Sadly, its this kind of sloppy thinking that hijackers rely on. Then I was told, that it was all legal and approved by our Ministry of the Environment. That very same Ministry that has, since the slash and burn of the Harris government, become a hollow spectre of its former self. What the approvals branch of your MOE has become, is a fee driven, enabling body for those who profit from polluting our environment. As for legality, if the government of the day approves it, its legal. Diquat harms and kills many not target species. This is a list from the PAN pesticide database, available online (pesticideinfo.org/) Amphibians - Mortality, Biochemistry, Development, Growth, Population AquaticPlants - Mortality, Accumulation, Biochemistry, Growth, Injury, Morphology, Physiology, Population, Reproduction Crustaceans - Mortality Fish- Mortality, Accumulation, Avoidance, Behavior, Biochemistry, Enzyme(s), Genetics, Growth, Morphology, Physiology, Population Fungi - Population Insects - Mortality, Population Molluscs - Mortality, Development, Growth, Intoxication, Reproduction NematodesandFlatworms - Mortality Phytoplankton -Mortality, Biochemistry, Cell(s), Ecosystem Process, Growth, Physiology, Population, Reproduction Zooplankton - Mortality, Accumulation, Intoxication, Population Highly toxic to birds. (Syngenta MSDS, Relone) So, this stuff is bad by all measures. No reward for aquatic life. Its interesting to note that the Municipality of Chatham Kent made a considerable financial commitment towards the expensive and questionably effective introduction of milfoil weevil larvae back in 2010. Now, these insects were already happily munching on milfoil prior to that, and there was no environmental cause for concern. However, when diquat was introduced into the very same area where these larvae feed, the little bugs are immediately killed. So at a dollar a pop for the introduced weevils, thats some pretty expensive control. What this ends up looking like is an attempt by a few Erieau residents to practice some good old fashion greenwashing, at the taxpayers expense. I think we need some more information about this. Now, as this is an election year, I wonder if any councillors have property in Erieau, on Rondeau Bay? I think theres one who even openly advocated spraying Rondeau Bay with 2-4D in Council Chambers, last July. Heaven forbid such a person would aspire to become our glorious leader. Maybe we could ask each councillor about environmental protection? I wonder who would try to change the topic?
Posted on: Sat, 02 Aug 2014 01:58:21 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015