Herbicides destroy more than weeds

Let's start by defining what an herbicide is, herbicides are synthetic products that are created by some industries for the control of plants that are considered weeds in agricultural production systems, these substances can generate an action on the plants that they want to control at the level of their metabolic system or simply through the contact that these substances have with some organ of the plant and in this way prevent the growth and development of these plant species.

The use of herbicides indiscriminately can become a polluting element for the natural ecosystem and in addition to this, the plants that are desired to be controlled generate a kind of resistance to herbicides, experimental tests have been carried out in this regard that have determined the resistance to these products by different species of plants considered weeds.

Logically, agriculture has become a business based on synthetic substances for rapid food production, in this sector the economic factor has prevailed, which, of course, is important, because the livelihood of many families depends on it, but it should also be considered that the spaces where they are planted are natural that were previously wooded areas. The large industries producing these synthetic products maintain that these substances do not cause harm to humans and the ecosystem because they degrade quickly in the soil when properly applied, do not accumulate in groundwater, have no effects on other organisms and do not leave residues in food.

However, Miguel Altieri quoted in his publication Agricultural Biotechnology in the year (2001), that by introducing these foreign and toxic substances to the ecosystem to control weeds can cause birth defects in animals, be toxic to marine life and cause cancer in humans, because some substances can be absorbed through the skin, which make it dangerous for producers and surrounding area where it is applied, that is why there are many safety standards to be able to apply them and these biosafety standards are generally not taken into account by producers in the field, especially in our region that we have seen such behavior when applying such products.

In the same publication it is mentioned that glyphosate is toxic for some species that inhabit the soil, including spiders, beetles and for other microorganisms that are essential for the natural process of decomposition of organic matter that guarantees soil fertility. They also point out that some herbicides accumulate in fruits and tubers because they are not completely degraded on plants and that is where the concern arises about the safety that food may have when there is an excessive use of this type of substances.

From our point of view, through the different researches we have read and what can be observed in the field in the medium and long term, these substances can significantly alter the biology of the soil by significantly intervening in the natural processes that run there, for example, it is said that plants belonging to the legume family have the ability to fix atmospheric nitrogen to the soil through a mutualistic symbiosis that performs with some bacteria, so if these substances significantly reduce the microbiological activity of the soil, this natural process cannot be executed in an adequate way.

Dear readers, as you have been able to verify, the indiscriminate use of this type of substance is counterproductive for the health of the entire productive system since all the elements that integrate it can be affected, therefore, these spaces in the long term become degraded areas that depend solely on this type of toxic management, changing from one product to another when weeds generate resistance and when environmental and economic costs do not lead to applying more ecological management, it will be a titanic task that will take many years for life found in the soil to return and natural processes to be enhanced.