Chiapas Coastal Basin Official Calls for Probe Into Pesticides The News
go to original November 1, 2012

A civil organization recently found alarming levels of agrochemicals in riverbeds, lakes and lagoons throughout the state. (The News)

CHIAPAS - Chiapas Coastal Basin Council President Bruno Giesemann Everbush called on federal and state authorities to investigate the “high levels” of pesticides contaminating riverbeds, lakes and lagoons throughout the state.

The Organic Consumers Association recently found alarming levels of agrochemicals in the state’s water and soil, as well as rising numbers of individuals from surrounding communities suffering from cancer and terminal illnesses.

In a study conducted by Greenpeace, the organization found that persistent organic pollutants, particularly DDT (an organochlorine insecticide) was “detected in eggs, milk, cheese, butter and creams in the Lagunera Region (1975, 1981 and 1987), Mexico City (1978 and 1981) and Soconusco, Chiapas, (1990 and 1998).”

Greenpeace also cited the World Health Organization as saying that breast milk in Mexican women had the highest levels of DDT worldwide.

“However, Mexico has continued to market chemicals banned in the countries in which they were (originally) produced,” said Giesemann.

Among the pesticides banned in other countries that are still authorized for production in Mexico are alachlor, aldicarb, azinphos methyl, captafol, carbaryl, captan, chlordane, DDT, dicofol, daytime, endosulfan, phorate, and kadetrina phosphamidon, as well as lindane, linuron, maneb, methidathion, methamidophos, methoxychlor, mevinphos, monocrotophos, omethoate, oxyfluorfen, paraquat, methyl parathion, pentachlorophenol, quintozene sulprofos, triazophos, tridemorph, vamidothion and 2-4-D.

“The situation is worrisome and we must evaluate contamination levels in water throughout the state and its repercussions,” Bruno Giesemann said. He went on to say that in farming regions such as Soconusco, farmers have overused agricultural pesticides largely due to a lack of information.

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