Does Glyphosate Disturb the Human Gut Microbiome?
More than half the bacteria in the human gut microbiome are sensitive to glyphosate, the mostly commonly used herbicide in the world, reported scientists this month in the Journal of Hazardous Materials.
American lawyers who successfully sued the makers of the glyphosate-based weedkiller Roundup on behalf of a man dying of cancer say Canada is “dead wrong” to allow it to be widely used here.
Monsanto was one producer responsible for Agent Orange, a herbicide used during wars, especially known for its use during the Vietnam War by the US, to exfoliate forests removing concealment and targeting crops, attacking food sources. The environmental and health impacts are still apparent today. It has been linked to multiple cancers, birth defects, and the contamination continues to impact the citizens of Vietnam, poisoning their food chain and causing illness. While Glyphosate is deemed safe and not toxic to humans by Monsanto and its corporate partners, including governments, Monsanto has made the same claims about Agent Orange.
Documents also reveal communications between Monsanto and a Canadian firm hired to recruit scientists to publish studies that ultimately defended glyphosate — some of which were secretly reviewed by Monsanto prior to publication. All those papers, as previously reported by CBC/Radio-Canada, were also used as part of Health Canada’s re-approval process of glyphosate in 2017.
Earlier this month, Health Canada responded to our concerns about its 2017 decision to continue to allow the use of glyphosate for another 15 years. Their verdict: there is no reason to believe that the scientific evidence used in Health Canada’s evaluation of the pesticide was compromised due to deliberate actions taken by Monsanto (now Bayer) to manipulate the science as revealed by the infamous Monsanto Papers.
For Immediate Release
Lori Ann Burd, (971) 717-6405, laburd@biologicaldiversity.org
EPA Finds Glyphosate Is Likely to Injure or Kill 93% of Endangered Species
WASHINGTON - The Environmental Protection Agency released a draft biological evaluation today finding that glyphosate is likely to injure or kill 93% of the plants and animals protected under the Endangered Species Act.
The long-anticipated draft biological evaluation released by the agency’s pesticide office found that 1,676 endangered species are likely to be harmed by glyphosate, the active ingredient in Roundup and the world’s most-used pesticide.
The draft biological opinion also found that glyphosate adversely modifies critical habitat for 759 endangered species, or 96% of all species for which critical habitat has been designated.
“The hideous impacts of glyphosate on the nation’s most endangered species are impossible to ignore now,” said Lori Ann Burd, environmental health director at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Glyphosate use is so widespread that even the EPA’s notoriously industry-friendly pesticide office had to conclude that there are hardly any endangered species that can manage to evade its toxic impacts.” [Read more]