Petition to Northumberland County Council - Stop Using Glyphosate

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Petition to Northumberland County Council - Stop Using Glyphosate

GLEN SANDERSON, LEADER OF THE COUNCIL; NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY COUNCIL

NEGP

The herbicide Glyphosate is used extensively by Northumberland County Council on pavements, paths and in our parks, green spaces and riversides. Studies have shown a link to cancer in humans, to the harming of numerous insects including bees, and to harming of earthworms and microorganisms that keep soil healthy. When sprayed near rivers, it contaminates and seeps into them - the manufacturer's own labels state that it should treated as hazardous waste and not be disposed of to water courses. Many other Councils across the UK are phasing out Glyphosate and, for the health of our communities and our environment, we ask that Northumberland County Council do the same.

Petition by

Bob Furness

Cramlington, United Kingdom

Sponsored by

North East Green Party

To: GLEN SANDERSON, LEADER OF THE COUNCIL; NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY COUNCIL
From: [Your Name]

Northumberland County Council and their contractors makes extensive use of Glyphosate in public spaces and all other spaces they maintain. This chemical poses a real risk to the public, to animals, to our rivers, to our environment and to horticultural workers: it has already been banned in Holland, Denmark, Sweden and France as well as by some Councils around the UK including Trafford, Brighton, Bristol and Croydon. This petition asks Northumberland County Council to follow their example, and to treat the health of our communities and or our environment as a priority.

In 2015 the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) classified Glyphosate as “probably carcinogenic to humans” and also concluded that there was “strong” evidence for genotoxicity https://www.iarc.fr/featured-news/media-centre-iarc-news-glyphosate/ .

Thomas Stewart, Co-Ordinator of the Berwick Green Party contacted Northumberland County Council in early 2019 and requested they cease the use of Glyphosate. In response the Council informed us that they would continue to make use of Glyphosate whilst it was permitted through UK Government regulations. However, since this time, more and more UK Councils have either stopped using or have reduced their use of Glyphosate.

A breakthrough court case against Monsanto was won by a man who developed cancer after using Roundup (the trade name of Glyphosate). He was awarded $289 million in damages.

Other councils now use eco-friendly alternatives such as non-toxic Foamstream. Methods such as Mesh-Tech are now available to combat Japanese Knotweed.

Glyphosate also kills beneficial insects and has been proven to cause mortality in several species including bees, predatory mites, lacewings, ladybirds and predatory beetles. Argentinian studies suggest that glyphosate use leads to a decline in honeybee activity. The demise of the monarch butterfly population in New York has been blamed on glyphosate. It is also known to be toxic to earthworms and inhibits the growth of mycorrhizal fungi which are essential for tree health, and to marine life.

Researchers from the University of Washington evaluated existing studies into the chemical and concluded that it significantly increases the risk of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), a cancer of the immune system. "All of the meta-analyses conducted to date, including our own, consistently report the same key finding: exposure to GBHs (glyphosate-based herbicides) are associated with an increased risk of NHL," the authors wrote in a study published in the journal Mutation Research.