Received: from coyote.dreamhost.com (coyote.dreamhost.com [66.33.216.128]) by mtain-dc01.r1000.mx.aol.com (Internet Inbound) with ESMTP id 87C91380000C9 for <[log in to unmask]>; Wed, 31 Aug 2011 11:45:33 -0400 (EDT) Received: from dreamhost.com (ip-66-33-206-8.dreamhost.com [66.33.206.8]) by coyote.dreamhost.com (Postfix) with ESMTP id E351C684A99F for <[log in to unmask]>; Wed, 31 Aug 2011 08:36:37 -0700 (PDT) Date: Wed, 31 Aug 2011 08:36:37 -0700 From: "GMWatch" <[log in to unmask]> Subject: GMW: It's official: Glyphosate found in US rivers, rainfall To: [log in to unmask] Sender: [log in to unmask] Reply-To: "GMWatch" <[log in to unmask]> Precedence: list Content-type: text/plain; charset="utf-8" X-Mailer: DreamHost Mailing Lists X-DH-Mailer-ID: 758220 X-Abuse-Info: http://dreamhost.com/tos.html X-Complaints-To: [log in to unmask] X-Bulkmail: 3.12 Message-Id: <[log in to unmask]> Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable x-aol-global-disposition: G X-AOL-SCOLL-SCORE: 0:2:223549808:93952408 X-AOL-SCOLL-URL_COUNT: 0 x-aol-sid: 3039ac1d40814e5e571d1779 X-AOL-IP: 66.33.216.128 X-AOL-SPF: domain : dreamhost.com SPF : pass It's official: Glyphosate used on GM crops found in US rivers, rainfall GM Freeze, 31 August 2011 http://www.gmfreeze.org/news-releases/165/=20 Monitoring by the US Geological Survey (USGS) has revealed that glyphosat= e and its breakdown product Aminomethylphosphonic acid (known as AMPA) ar= e frequently found in rainfall and rivers in the Mississippi Basin, where= most GM crops tolerant to glyphosate are grown. [1] Glyphosate (the basis of Monsanto's brand name product Roundup) is widely= used in the US with Monsanto's Roundup Ready GM crops, which have been g= enetically modified to tolerate the weedkiller, so they survive when a fi= eld is sprayed with it. Herbicide tolerant GM plants are not currently gr= own in the UK due to concerns about adverse impacts on wildlife associate= d with the loss of habitat caused by the weedkiller. However Monsanto has= lobbied persistently for their introduction. Roundup Ready soya and maiz= e are imported from the US for use in animal feed, and meat and dairy pro= ducts fed on GM feed are not labelled in many British supermarkets. The USGS results are based on two studies of rain and watersheds in agric= ultural areas of the Mississippi Basin where the "the greatest use" of gl= yphosate takes place to control weeds in GM maize, soya and cotton tolera= nt to glyphosate/Roundup. The USGS reports that glyphosate use rose by mo= re than eight fold, to 88,000 tons, in the 15 years to 2007, further erod= ing the myth that GM crops reduce chemical use. Monsanto has repeatedly denied that glyphosate washes off fields in signi= ficant amounts, claiming the herbicide binds to soil particles and theref= ore cannot be leached. [2] The USGS results confirm warnings from other countries that glyphosate is= more mobile in some soils than the biotech corporation is prepared to ad= mit. [3]=20 The presence of glyphosate and AMPA in surface waters means that drinking= water quality and aquatic wildlife may be put at risk. Studies have show= n many aquatic species are affected by the herbicide and its breakdown pr= oduct, and there is growing concern about the safety of the product for h= uman health. [4] In addition the overuse of glyphosate on GM soya, cotton= and maize crops is driving an escalation and spread of problem weeds res= istant to the weedkiller, meaning even more Roundup has to be used, often= in combination with other herbicides, in an attempt to control these new= =E2=80=9Csuper=E2=80=9D weeds. The USGS found glyphosate in more than 60% of air and rain sampled at thr= ee locations in Mississippi, Iowa and Indiana, with AMPA found in more th= an 50% of samples, at concentrations up to 9.1ng/cubic metre and 0.49ng/c= ubic metre respectively. [5] Researchers from the USGS estimate that abou= t 1% of glyphosate sprayed in catchments ended up in surface waters in th= e four areas where monitoring was conducted in streams and rivers. Concen= trations varied between different river systems that formed part of the m= onitoring programme. The highest median level of glyphosate detected was = 5.7=CE=BCg/litre. [6] This level would not be allowed to enter public sup= ply untreated under the EU Drinking Water Directive. =20 This year the European Commission postponed to 2015 a scheduled safety re= view of the European approval of glyphosate. [7] Commenting Pete Riley of GM Freeze said: =E2=80=9CThe Mississippi Basin has been subjected to glyphosate applicati= on on a massive scale for the last 15 years. As a result of this giant un= controlled experiment, the USGS is now finding that glyphosate and its br= eakdown products are turning up in rainfall and rivers, and not, as Monsa= nto would have us think, being safely locked up in the soil.=20 =E2=80=9CPoliticians and regulators need to take note of these findings a= nd suspend the use of Roundup tolerant crops wherever they are grown to p= rotect water supply, wildlife and public health. The first step should be= to urgently reschedule the safety review of glyphosate, ensuring it is b= oth transparent and independent of data supplied by the industry. =E2=80=9CThanks to opposition from the public and some Members States, th= e EU has escaped being part of the Monsanto experiment and has the opport= unity to say =E2=80=98No=E2=80=99 to GM herbicide tolerant crops, which a= re now rightly seen as an escalation of the chemical arms race which bega= n in the 1950s. On the basis of this latest USGS survey results, it=E2=80= =99s time to use new tactics. The mounting evidence on the safety and mov= ement of glyphosate now merits a ban on GM tolerant crops. =E2=80=9D ENDs Calls to Pete Riley 07903 341 065 Notes [1] USGS press release, 29 August 2011. =E2=80=9CWidely Used Herbicide Co= mmonly Found in Rain and Streams in the Mississippi River Basin=E2=80=9D=20 [2] =E2=80=9CFrom soil and plant applications of glyphosate herbicide it = is expected that a small amount of the applied glyphosate may enter surfa= ce waters through runoff or attached to soil particles that wash off trea= ted fields.=E2=80=9D Monsanto. 2003. Backgrounder. Glyphosate and water q= uality. Updated November 2003.=09 [3] See GM Freeze report Herbicide Tolerance and GM crops - Why the world= should be ready to Roundup glyphoste. Chapter 4=20 [4] See GM Freeze report Herbicide Tolerance and GM crops - Why the world= should be ready to Roundup glyphoste. Chapters 2, 3, 5, 6 and 7 [5] Chang FC, Simcik MF and Capel CD, 2011. =E2=80=9COccurrence and fate = of the herbicide glyphosate and its degradate Aminomethylphosphonic acid = in the atmosphere=E2=80=9D. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry, 30, 5= 48=E2=80=93555 [6] Coupe RH, Kalkhoff SK, Capel PD and Gregoire C, 2011. =E2=80=9CFate a= nd transport of glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid in surface wate= rs of agricultural basin=E2=80=9D. Pesticide Management Science, 67, doi:= 10.1002/ps.2212 [7] See GM Freeze action Is Roundup Safe? ................................................................ Website: http://www.gmwatch.org Profiles: http://www.powerbase.info/index.php/GM_Watch:_Portal Twitter: http://twitter.com/GMWatch Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/GMWatch/276951472985?ref=3Dnf This email should only be sent to those who have asked to receive it. 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