Latest update March 28th, 2024 12:59 AM
Feb 08, 2016 Letters
Dear Editor,
In regards to the Zika virus epidemic, I am writing this letter due to three pressing reasons: I am a Guyanese; an environmentalist; someone who is terrible concerned about Guyanese, who are my countrymen, relatives and friends.
David Williams, Chief Inspector of Vector Control Services, probably due to the insistence of many contributors to your newspaper, including myself, has decided to give Guyanese some semblance of an explanation/justification for the use of the many chemicals Vector Control Services is using to combat this pest.
I don’t know if the dearth of clear explanations in Mr. Williams’ report is due to his thinking that Guyanese do not deserve any clarifications, due to their intellectual inability to understand same, or his lack of a clear knowledge of the substances his agency is using. Be that as it may, kindly allow me the space to further clarify on what is a very serious topic for all Guyanese.
Mr. David Williams has listed the following chemicals of which I will further elaborate:
ABATE: The active ingredient in Abate is TEMPHOS. It kills mosquito larvae. It is almost insoluble (like oil) in water, which means it is hazardous to all living thing in the water where it is used; birds, crabs, fish, beneficial insects, shrimp and honeybees etc. It is a poison if ingested by humans. Clothes coming into contact with it should be washed since it affects the skin. Under extreme heat in breaks down into poisonous gases. It should be kept away from fire. Should not be inhaled.
FENDONA: Very effective at killing all kinds of insects. Not classified as hazardous but can be poisonous if ingested. Can have long-term health effects if sprayed on humans. Slowness of decomposition in water means that aquatic animals can ingest and pass it on to humans.
DDT (dichlorophenyltrichloroethane): It was banned worldwide in the 70’s. Though effective in reducing mosquito populations, it blocked egg-shell formation in many egg laying species which threatened their extinction and caused cancers in humans, either from direct contact or eating animals which had the chemical concentrated in their systems. 40 years after it was banned in the USA, products from DDT was found in 99% of those tested.
GIRLS EXPOSED TO DDT BEFORE PUBERTY ARE 5 TIMES MORE LIKELY TO DEVELOP BREAST CANCER BY MIDDLE AGE!!!
DDT is making a comeback, since the manufacturers are claiming that its use in very small amount is relatively harmless. The scientific evidence does not support this but many African countries and Guyana have apparently bought into that.
MALATHION/DIESEL: The only relationship I could find with combining these two chemicals, if that is what is being done, is to create a stable surface on water which would cause mosquito to die, since they won’t be able to get oxygen. Any oil would do that. Though very popular as an efficient gas in vehicles, diesel gives off noxious fumes which can be poisonous. Malathion however, can be absorbed from the air and last about 18 days in water. Humans exposed to Malathion can have problems associated with the nervous system.
It must be noted that Guyana does not have a Zika epidemic. To date, there is only one case reported. And if it did, the symptoms are akin to a week-long flu. Nobody has died from an attack of the Zika virus!
Children in two countries, it is guessed, may have been born with reduced brain size due to Zika infection. This is yet to be medically proven. Who is really gaining from this alleged pandemic?
The pharmaceutical companies. The first world countries buy up their supplies, ‘donate’ them to UN Health agencies, who in turn, donate them to ‘third world countries’. Is all this justified? I don’t really know.
Albert R. Cumberbatch, Ph. D. (Environmentalist)
THIS IDIOT TELLING GUYANA WE HAVE NO SAY IN THE 50% PROFIT SHARING AGREEMENT WE HAVE WITH EXXON.
Mar 28, 2024
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