Four Statements in Support of the Petition

Submitted to the Sedona City Council June 27, 2006

 

 SEE: 1. PETITION AND RESULTING CITY COUNCIL MOTIONS

 

 

 

Statement #1 to Sedona City Council by Carol Grohs, 6/27/06

 

 

Dear Council,

 

As a horticultural consultant, I would like to present a number of alternatives to chemical herbicides, all of which have been used successfully in other communities.  With all of the methods and products that follow, strategic timing of treatments is critical. Immature plants will be killed, root and all, if they are treated before they have stored enough carbohydrates in their roots to regenerate a top. Larger plants, generally 2 inches or more in height, may require one or more repeat treatments. Therefore, treatments should always be done as early as possible.  At the very least, plants should be treated before they produce seeds.

 

Continual monitoring and flexibility in scheduling treatments are highly recommended for efficient and effective weed control. For this reason, many cities have a citizen’s advisory board or a horticulturist overseeing all weed control work, and none that I contacted have monthly contracts.

 

Several experts contacted expressed their surprise at the high cost of Sedona’s contract with Verde Valley Weed Control. They felt that for the same figure ($15,489), the 6.8 acres in question could be treated without chemicals, if careful attention were given to timing.

 

Here is a concise list of alternative weed control methods and products that I recommend the City of Sedona integrate into an herbicide free program.  A subsequent statement from (name withheld) will elaborate on the value of each of these tools and will make comments on how they might best be utilized.

 

o        Mechanical methods including pulling, mowing, weed whacking, and hoeing

o        Sprays including vinegar- based products such as Burnout, and a new Vitamin C based product called C-Cide

o        Barriers including landscaping cloth and concrete

 

To keep costs down, many cities use volunteer or part time labor, especially for weed pulling. Sedona could set up a volunteer weed removal program coordinated by a city employee, and involving some or all of the following:

 

o        Ongoing or seasonal pulling

o        Special events, possibly tied to National Season’s of Service Holidays

o        A program similar to adopt-a-highway programs, involving individuals, groups and businesses.  Businesses located along Hwy 89A might be especially interested in participating.

o        Temporary hiring of groups seeking a fund raising project, as has been done by the city of Olympia, Washington

 

Sedona’s Public Works Department is understandably concerned about being asked to fulfill their responsibility to control weeds without their most convenient tool.  Perhaps their skepticism stems partly from their recent experience of losing control of weed growth following the unprecedented rains of winter 2005.  In any case, it is a fact that many cities across the U.S. and even more in Canada are currently using, with success, the strategies, techniques and products I have presented to you. 

 

I would like to conclude with two final components of alternative weed control which I found in every successful program: ­­commitment to doing what is right, and pride in doing it.

 

Thank you for your time.

 

 

 

 

Statement #2 to Sedona City Council, 6/27/06

 

 

To the Council,

 

I will elaborate on recommended alternative methods of weed control.

 

Mechanical Methods

o        Pulling weeds is the most effective of treatments because it removes the entire plant including the root. Though labor intensive initially, it eliminates the need for follow-up treatments on a given plant and for further removal of dead plant material. Pulling weeds, unlike spraying, gives an immediate well-kept look to an area, and, if done before seed production, will be needed less and less frequently over time.

 

o        Mowing and weed whacking are the most commonly used methods of weed control in the communities we contacted. Although these methods don’t necessarily kill plants, they create a tidy appearance, and if done before the seed production, can prevent proliferation of most unwanted plants.

 

o        Hoeing effectively removes the tops of plants and, with good timing, will kill the entire plant.

 

Sprays

o        Burnout is a vinegar and lemon juice-based product which is being used successfully in Arcata, California, and has proven effective in trials at Cornell University. Although Burnout is generally used as a spray, workers in Arcata have reported success in killing dandelions, root and all, by sponging the meristem with a daubing stick. Of course, spraying Burnout on plants 2 inches in height or smaller will also kill both top and root.

 

The city of Santa Fe, New Mexico, where climate and landscaping style are similar to Sedona’s, is also using a vinegar-based product with success. Santa Fe has not used any chemical herbicides on its roadsides for 7 years.

 

o        C-Cide is a Vitamin C based spray currently being studied by Cornell University. Initial trials have shown it to be even more effective than Burnout, and to be very user-friendly.  Suffolk Community College, Ammerman College, and the Northport School District, all on Long Island, were so pleased with trials done on their campuses, that all three institutions are in the process of ordering C-Cide. Sedona has been given 2 gallons of C-Cide concentrate as a sample, and has been offered a 10% discount on any orders of C-Cide.

 

Barriers

o        Barriers are a valuable tool in landscape management because they can prevent the growth of unwanted plants, thereby lowering maintenance costs.

 

o        Last year, Sedona’s public works department installed a high quality landscaping cloth covered with small stones along stretches of 89A. This combination of materials should do an excellent job of preventing weed growth from below the cloth, and will make removal of any weeds that germinate in the stones above the cloth easy and complete.

 

o        An even more effective and lower maintenance barrier is concrete with embedded

river stones. This combination gives a nice appearance to appropriate small areas and prevents seed germination, unlike small loose stones which collect dust and become a growing medium for weeds.

 

Thank you.

 

 

 

 

Statement # 3 to Sedona City Council, 6/27/06

 

Herbicides are a category of pesticides. It is not widely known that no pesticide manufacturer in the United States (as determined by the Environmental Protection Agency) is allowed to call its product "safe." When a pesticide passes the scrutiny of the EPA, it simply means that that product is effective and does kill the organism that its label says it kills. Also, while some information on toxic effects is made available by manufacturers, there is no legal requirement to provide such data on "inert" ingredients, only active ones.* According to a 1996 report by the Attorney General of New York State,  this is a serious gap in the data of potential chemical effects since active ingredients can make up as little as one percent or less of the total formulation.** Thus, risk assessments that are based on active ingredients alone can be misleading and serve to downplay the detrimental effects of the products under consideration.

 

Further, a chemical that is used as an “inert” ingredient in one product can sometimes be found as an active ingredient in another. In some cases, according to the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides, the inert ingredients may be more toxic than the active ingredients. ***

 

This is just another reason why so many municipalities are switching to non toxic methods of weed control. Please refer to the expanded list of officials and scientists who have stated in phone conversations with Sedona area residents their willingness to discuss their programs, methods, or expertise with Sedona city officials. The same document also has an expanded list of municipalities that have non toxic, non chemical weed control programs. An earlier document with less extensive research and fewer contacts was emailed to the council on May 2, 2006.

 

Please consider the seriousness of the scientific research regarding the health risks of herbicides in your decision on the future weed control program for Sedona.  Please make it a non toxic one. Thank you.

 

 

*UB Pesticide Report 2000, Stacey Vaeth, B.A. Environmental Studies, 2000
UB Green Office

 

**Secret Hazards of Pesticides: Inert Ingredients, Report, Attorney General of New York State, 1996.

 

***Worst Kept Secrets:  Toxic Inert Ingredients in Pesticides, Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides, Eugene, OR, January, 1998.

 

 

 

 

 

 Statement #4 to Sedona City Council by Selene Anema, 6/27/06

 

 

Let me first say that I am an RN. I have worked for the Response Team for the Chemically Injured and have seen firsthand the results of chemical exposure in others as well as myself.

 

The 677 signatures on the Sedona Spray Free petition testify to the general public’s concern over the use of herbicides on highway 89A.

 

Herbicides are categorized as pesticides.

 

Current studies indicate that these chemicals act synergistically with each other, meaning the toxic effects increase exponentially when two or more are in the environment at the same time. The EPA does not include the toxicity of mixtures in its studies.

 

Also, the EPA studies do not include assessment of the risks to vulnerable populations, for example, children. A recent leukemia study in Montreal showed that 40% of children studied had decreased ability to detoxify pesticides. Other vulnerable populations include the elderly, women, and people with suppressed immune systems such as those with AIDS or cancer.

 

I will give a brief summary of some of the health effects found to be associated with the three herbicides that have been used on 89A:

 

Glyphosate is the active ingredient in Ranger Pro and Roundup. Monsanto claims that Roundup is safe but the facts don’t support this. Independent studies show that Glyphosate is toxic to earthworms, beneficial insects, birds, fish, and mammals.

 

It has been found to be extremely persistent in the soil, with residue absorbed by crops over a year after application. Glyphosate is associated with late abortions, congenital malformations, cancer and neurological conditions.

 

Mecamine D contains 2,4-D. 2,4-D was used as part of Agent Orange to defoliate the jungle. This is a notorious endocrine disruptor which has been linked to breast cancer, birth defects and central nervous system damage and delayed pregnancy.

 

Endocrine disruptors are described in the book, Our Stolen Future, which shows how devastating these chemicals are to the whole ecosystem.

 

Children who were exposed to herbicides, mainly 2,4-D had twice the incidence of leukemia.

 

Both glyphosate and 2, 4-D are known to bioaccumulate, which means that they affect not only the individuals directly exposed, but their offspring as well.

 

Pendulum Aqua Cap Contains Pendimephaline. This chemical is known to be extremely toxic to fish and other aquatic organisms. It causes central nervous system depression in mice and rats.

 

So why expose humans and the environment to these health risks? By not using pesticides, we can lower chemical exposures and help prevent these devastating illnesses. Please do not renew the contract to spray pesticides with Verde Valley Weed Control. If the City of Sedona makes the commitment to control weeds through sustainable and environmentally sound methods, it can most certainly be done.