Oh dear! The world continues to hurtle towards its self-appointed date with extinction, driven by the three poisons of greed, hatred, and ignorance. Human beings, increasingly faced with the effects of climate change, react in well established patterns of denial. (Was mine the only shed roof to blow off after Storm Eowyn?) Still, we sleep at night in the knowledge that our enlightened Cumberland councillors will wisely lead us through the muddy paths of a rapidly changing environment. Or will they?
Late last year the Green Party members put forward a motion asking the council to restrict the use of glyphosate as a weed killer due to its devastating direct and indirect effect on flora and fauna, including a link to several forms of cancer. In recent years it has also been demonstrated that glyphosate has a detrimental effect on the gut of animals producing a higher risk of neuropsychiatric disorders. The pesticide has been banned or restricted in many countries including France, Vietnam, Denmark, and The Netherlands.
The motion presented to the council was not asking for an outright immediate ban on the use of this pesticide. It was proposing a phased withdrawal over three years giving an opportunity to trial less harmful alternative weed treatments. You would have thought this to be a perfectly rational, sensible approach that mirrored the fact that over 80 boroughs in England have already banned or restricted glyphosate use. However, the motion was defeated by 28 votes to 6 with one abstention. Now what are we to make of this? Could it be that some of our democratic leaders view the Green Party as a motley collection of tree huggers and butterfly chasers with idealistic views that are unworkable in practice? Surely not! Whatever the reason, the warnings of environmental groups including Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, the WWF, as well as the Green Party have not been fully heeded.
When something happens (like a wildfire in California, a series of floods, or a record-breaking storm) that shouts out our planet is struggling, – rather than admit that we might have a fundamental problem, some folks bury their heads in the sand like our dear old ostrich hoping that when they pull their heads out everything will be ok. Well, it ain’t.
The thing is, we all must change our view of what is important. In recent years we have grown used to streets and kerbs free of weeds (not like in the 1950s when I grew up!) but what really is the harm in a few wildflowers? Let’s give nature a chance.
Keith Fitton
Chair, West Cumberland Green Party