The Headwaters (Pacific Lumber PALCO) controversy, at the very least, has been responsible for reporting on new science in forest and stream management. The following is an excerpt, from such science, on herbicides and ecosystem health that may give some pause for thought.
From:
COMMENTS ON THE PALCO HCP/SYP AND EIS/EIR WITH REGARD TO THE MAINTENANCE OF RIPARIAN, AQUATIC, AND LATE SERAL ECOSYSTEMS AND THEIR ASSOCIATED AMPHIBIAN AND REPTILE SPECIES
Hartwell H. Welsh, Jr., Amy J. Lind, Lisa M. Ollivier, Garth R. Hodgson and Nancy E. KarrakerHerpetology Research GroupUSDA Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station, Redwood Sciences Laboratory,1700 Bayview Dr.Arcata, California95521
Herbicides and Forest Ecosystem Health
Recent research on chemical disruptions of the endocrine systems of animals indicates that many common industrial chemicals can have profound and long-lasting adverse effects on many vertebrates species, including humans (Colborn and Clement 1992, Colborn et al. 1993, Colborn et al. 1996, EPA 1997).
At this point in time, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has no formal tests or screening processes established for detecting these commercially available hormone-mimicking and hormone-blocking chemicals (EPA 1997). Adverse effects can occur with even miniscule doses (parts per trillion) of some of these chemicals (Colborn and Clement 1992, Colborn et al. 1993, Colborn et al. 1996, EPA 1997). This hormone-mimicking mechanism has been proposed as a possible explanation for the current, pervasive breast cancer epidemic in western society (Davis et al. 1993).
Many chemical herbicides used on PALCO forests have been documented to mimic the female hormone estrogen (e.g., 2,4-D, 2,4,5-T, atrazine; Colborn et al. 1993). These herbicides have also been linked to deformities or mortalities in birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles, and fish (Hall and Henry 1992, Colborn et al. 1993, Berrill et al. 1994, Berrill et al. 1997).
In the absence of studies of any particular chemical which demonstrate that it is not harmful to the species of concern in this HCP/SYP, and in the interest of ecosystem health, the safest approach currently available would be to avoid the use of all of these chemicals.
