Sir, – I note that the World Health Organisation came to the conclusion last year that glyphosate was "probably carcinogenic to humans" ("EU states refuse to extend Monsanto weedkiller licence", June 7th). There is growing evidence that glyphosate is more persistent in the soil than was first thought.
Herbicide, most likely glyphosate-based, is now widely used in Ireland to prepare fields for crops. But in recent years it is also liberally used along roadsides and around homes. Aside from the potential health hazard it might pose, two things strike me every time I see this: the vegetation looks hideous for weeks, even months, afterwards; and the only plants that regenerate after spraying are invariably noxious weeds such as docks, thistles, bindweed and willowherbs, which gain vigour for the lack of competition from other plants.
Nowadays when fields are increasingly intensively managed, roadsides are key sites for biodiversity. Let the roadside wild flora remain and in turn provide food for our valuable pollinators. Perhaps local authorities could set an example by refraining from roadside spraying. Tidy Towns committees are now beginning to show the lead here; let other communities also follow this example. – Yours, etc,
MICHELINE
SHEEHY SKEFFINGTON,
Clarinbridge,
Co Galway.