Experts support 2,4-D, but Stamps won’t spray the weed
SALISBURY’S medical officer of health, Dr Timothy Stamps, stuck to his guns yesterday. He would not hear of spraying 2,4-D on to Lake Mcllwaine’s water hyacinth, despite widespread opinion that the hormone weed-killer is harmless.
His objection to using 2,4-D was made after reading a report from the US Department of Health, Education and Welfare, he said.
Dr Stamps said on Tuesday there was a danger of 2,4-D causing abnormalities in unborn babies.
In other moves on the lake weed controversy yesterday the Deputy Mayor, Councillor Jack Alves, recommended engaging African gangs to clear the bilharzia- laden weed manually.
Chairman of the Rhodesia Pesticide Association Mr G Westbury, issued a statement in support of using 2,4-D on the lake.
“It is widely used throughout the world for weed control in water supplies (including Australia and the US), without any apparent harmful effect on life,” he said.
It was not known to have harmed humans and there was no record of it having harmful effects on unborn children, when used to recommended rates.
LESSONS FOR TODAY
◆ Most people erroneously thought that water hyacinth was a post-independent weed pollution that was carelessly placed on Lake Chivero (formerly Mccllwaine), the capital’s major water source.
◆ According to one website, water hyacinth (eichhornia crassipes) “is a large, free-floating plant that inhabits stationary or slow-moving warm waters of tropical and sub-tropical regions worldwide. Water hyacinths have the characteristic thick green leaves of other herbaceous floating plants, which can reach 15 cm in length.” ◆ The US Department of Health, Education and Welfare, after extensive experiments on mice, had recommended that further studies should be done on 2,4-D. ◆ Dr Stamps said it was on this basis that he did not consider it would be safe to apply large quantities of the herbicides to the city’s main water supply system.
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