Policy: County spray kills so much
July 3, 2008 · Updated 9:20 PM
Island Countys roadside spray does threaten salmon.
To protect aquatic life, including salmon, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency has set hazard levels for these toxins in water. The U.S. Geologic Survey has been sampling watersheds throughout the Northwest since 1991 for numerous pesticides, including those used by Island County.
Three of the herbicides used in the countys roadside spray program, Diuron, Triclopyr and 2,4-D (one of the two herbicides in Agent Orange) have been found in water bodies at levels considered hazardous to aquatic life. Puget Sound is one of these water bodies. The water runoff from Whidbey and Camano Islands sprayed roads ends up in Puget Sound.
In 1985, concern about water pollution led Island County to stop spraying numerous pesticides that were known to pollute water. Somehow, that concern has been forgotten. Now, Island County is using proven water polluters.
Jefferson, Snohomish, Clallam, San Juan and Thurston counties no longer spray their roadsides. Its time for Island County to join its neighbors and stop spraying their roadsides. We owe it to the sea life, we owe it to ourselves and we owe it to our children. We all live downstream.
Nancy Schaaf
Clinton
Comment on this story.
So keep your comments:
- Civil
- Smart
- On-topic
- Free of profanity
We ask that all participants own their words by logging in with their Facebook account. It's a simple process that will take seconds and helps keep our comments free of trolls, cranks, and “drive-by” commenters. We reserve the right to remove comments from anyone using screen names, pseudonyms or false identities. Please refer to our Terms of Use for full detail on participating on our site.
