| ||||
 |  | |||
| Home | Subscribe | Back Issues | The Organization | Volunteer | Do Something Directory | ||||
| ||||
| Road KillState's DOT is mainly to blame for roadside herbicidesby Angela StoreyWe've all seen it--the brown strip of grass along our roads andhighways. It is a telltale mark of the roadside herbicide applicationsperformed by our cities, counties, and state agencies. Herbicides usedrange from Round-Up to Dicamba, and other toxic pesticides, includingmixtures. Runoff from roadside herbicide applications can reach ourstreams, effecting the ability of salmon to swim, spawn, detectpredators, or fight off disease. Potentially the worst violator in the state is the Washington StateDepartment of Transportation (WSDOT). Charged with maintaining over100,000 acres along state highways, the WSDOT uses herbicides thathave been linked to cancer, developmental toxicity, endocrine(hormone) disruption, and ground water contamination. WSDOT does havean Integrated Vegetation Management (IVM) plan, and finds that wherethey have implemented IVM, their herbicide use has decreased. Despitethese IVM programs, WSDOT reports that in 2000 alone, they used over50,000 pounds of herbicides (active ingredients only!) just for gravelshoulder maintenance along highways. This does not include noxiousweed control (another 20,000 pounds of active ingredients) or tree andbrush control (5,000 pounds active ingredient). Some of those most upset about WSDOT's resistance to reducingherbicide use are those who live in the six Washington counties thatdon't spray herbicides for county roadside management. "If the countyhas made a concerted effort to use non-chemical means to controlvegetation along county roads, then the WSDOT should do the same,"says Margaret Owens, who helps head up Clallam County No-SprayCoalition. The coalition is working with citizens in other no-sprayareas--including Jefferson, Island, Snohomish, and Thurston Counties,as well as Bainbridge Island--to get WSDOT to stop using herbicidesalong state highways in their communities. "We've seen the effects of the WSDOT indiscriminately spraying creeks,wetlands, native plants, beaches, and blackberry bushes where peopleoften go to pick berries," says Josey Paul, another Clallam organizer.In a letter to the WSDOT last fall, Paul writes, "the DOT has movedinto a policy of pesticides first ... The spray cannon is often lefton as a general debrusher for long stretches, 'nuking,' in thevernacular of the spray crews, our scenic highways." Owens and Paul have worked tirelessly to prove to the WSDOT that theircounty will not tolerate the state spraying along its highways. Thecoalition now has support from local salmon groups, tribes, laborunions, biologists, business owners, citizens, and even the ClallamBay/Sekiu Chamber of Commerce. WSDOT says they are currently draftingan IVM plan for the area, but it will definitely include use ofherbicides. WSDOT RespondsOn April 10, after hearing citizen concerns about herbicide use,Secretary of Transportation Doug MacDonald writes:"WSDOT is currentlynot considering an abandonment of herbicide use on any portion of thestate highway system simply as a result of a county decisionrespecting the means of vegetation management on county roads in thatcounty." The fact is that there is no reason that the WSDOT can't beginno-spray programs in a few areas of the state. California does it.After battling with Caltrans for years, no-spray communities innorthern California got the state to agree to maintain state highwayswithin their counties without herbicides. If California can do it, socan we. Take Action!Send in your comments today! Let Secretary MacDonald know that youstrongly support the WSDOT creating no-spray programs for communitiesthat are choosing not to spray. WSDOT should be responsive to ourconcerns, and especially to the decisions made in our communities. Youcan also contact your state legislator and ask them to register theirconcern about this issue with the WSDOT. You can send a letter from www.watoxics.org or write to SecretaryMacDonald at MacDonD@wsdot.wa.gov, 360-705-6800, c/o WSDOT, PO Box47316, Olympia, WA 98504-7316.For more information, contact Angela Storey, Pesticides Organizer,Washington Toxics Coalition, astorey@watoxics.org or 206-632-1545 ext.11  |
|
