Glyphosate scandal in Elmshorn: trees poisoned again!

Glyphosate scandal in Elmshorn: trees poisoned again!

In Elmshorn, a town in the Pinneberg district, a new incident involving glyphosate is causing worried faces. Two red oak trees were suspected to have been poisoned with the environmental pest. This was noticed during a routine inspection after leaf fall was noticed on the trees. Analyzes showed that glyphosate could be detected in both the leaves and soil of the affected trees. The city of Elmshorn then filed a complaint against unknown persons in order to get to the bottom of the incident. However, there is currently no danger to residents as the city continues to ensure that the trees do not pose a traffic hazard, reports NDR.

Glyphosate, a commonly used agent to control unwanted plants, is also popular in agriculture. Its history dates back to the 1970s and it is the most widely used weed killer in the world. In Germany, a ban on the drug was supposed to come into force from January 2024, but was deemed legally invalid due to an EU extension of the approval. Despite controversy, glyphosate remains permitted in agriculture under certain conditions. In the canton of Solothurn, a town in Switzerland, the cantonal parliament recently decided against a complete ban and continued to allow the drug to be used sparingly, especially to combat invasive plants, such as srf.ch reported.

History and future developments

There have been similar incidents in Elmshorn before. A previous case resulted in the red oaks becoming bare and ultimately dead after three years. This raises questions about the long-term safety and potential consequences of glyphosate use. While annual glyphosate consumption in Switzerland is around 300 tons and is considered economical, the world shows a different dimension with a total of 700,000 tons used annually. These numbers illustrate how deeply rooted glyphosate is in modern agriculture.

In Elmshorn, we are now closely monitoring whether and how the health risk to people and nature could be influenced by these incidents. There are also efforts to combat unwanted plants not only with chemical agents, but also with mechanical methods, which are considered more environmentally friendly in many countries. The road inspectorate in the canton of Solothurn has already taken some steps in this direction and shows that an alternative approach to dealing with invasive plants is certainly possible.

In view of the repeated glyphosate incidents and the ongoing discussions surrounding the use of this controversial substance, Elmshorn could soon be faced with the question of whether the municipalities need to urgently examine alternatives. The developments here remain exciting in any case and citizens are called upon to actively participate in the discussion and find out about the effects of the use of glyphosate.