ᐅ Garden Photos Chat Corner

Steffi33 schrieb:

Respect… I just received a response to my email—very quick!

“…Today, the field was sprayed against the weed windgrass.
The herbicide Pontos was applied, which has a 100% soil-active effect…“

Now I need to find out what the herbicide ‘Pontos’ actually is.

I worked for several years in research and development of crop protection products and have some knowledge in this area.
The main ingredients of "Pontos" are picolinafen (weight %: 8.74) and flufenacet (weight %: 20.98).
Flufenacet is a CMR substance.
CMR stands for: C: carcinogenic - causes cancer M: mutagenic - causes mutations R: reproductive toxicant - harms the fetus during pregnancy and can affect fertility.

The degradation product trifluoroacetate (TFA) can be detected in groundwater and is difficult to remove during drinking water treatment.
Products containing picolinafen are, by the way, banned in Switzerland.

That doesn't sound very good.

Some things are better left unknown. The product appears to be permitted and is available everywhere according to Google.

I had read that it is newly approved. I assume it is more environmentally friendly than, for example, glyphosate.

Steffi33 schrieb:

Respect… I just received a reply to my email – that was quick!

“…Today, herbicide was sprayed on this field to control windgrass. The herbicide Pontos, which has a 100% soil-active effect, was applied…”

Now I have to find out what the herbicide ‘Pontos’ actually is.

And then? Who was there first: the agricultural land or the residential area?

It’s like people building cheaply near an airport and then forming community groups to protest against aircraft noise.

Unbelievable.

As always, the dose makes the poison. If you are interested, @Steffi33, you can find quite detailed test results from animal experiments at the EPA (US Environmental Protection Agency). Flufenacet is listed on the Greenpeace blacklist, which is another source of information.

As a layperson (which I am as well), it is difficult to assess such matters objectively. We live in a world where excitement and undermining trust are just as much a business as environmentally harmful behavior. This makes it very easy for us to become unsettled and hard to evaluate facts properly. I would recommend choosing not to give in to fear and panic.