Waverley Council's poison truck and poison sprayers

Well, there we are trying to get on with our life, us and the little critters and along comes a Council and poisons things.

Here’s an email by Vera, a resident of Bronte in Waverley Council’s area, NSW, to her Councillors about recent spraying of poison by the Council.

Has anyone noticed today’s rain?  You’d reckon it’d be doing some good, unless you swam at Bronte beach after the poisoning by the Council in the catchment above.

Vera tells me she saw a little baby crawling in the grass verge where the poison was sprayed today.

Hard to imagine a sillier way to waste thousands of dollars than that chosen by Waverley Council:

‘Hello Councillors.

I’d like to express my objection to the spraying of poison in general, and specifically in our street today.

Today I took this photo of  staff literally hosing the footpath on the corner of Lugar and Brae streets, Bronte, with what they told me is Round-up.

I urge all Councillors to research the environmental and health effects of Round-up and particularly the other chemical components of Round-up which are far more toxic than glyphosate (the listed active ingredient).

Please think carefully about what is being done and ask yourselves “Has anyone ever died from a dandelion on the footpath?”, and then think about whether poisoning our environment is really a wise decision.

You can see from the photos how the poison is being used, and the inevitability of it being washed into waterways, soaked up by leaf litter, beginning its journey into our food chain. Children and pets play on the footpath, babies crawl on the footpath and in the grass on these (now) poisoned verges.

Ironically many of the plants being poisoned have been used for thousands of years as traditional foods and medicines.  Purslane, Chickweed and Dandelions are on the menu in Sydney’s fine dining restaurants, but a man with a hose full of poison has decided we cannot eat it from our doorsteps.

Last week I found many dead insects and lizards outside a house in Lugar street (which may or may not be related to Council’s current poison spraying regime).

If Council has any regard for the well being of its residents, pets, wildlife and the environment in general, please stop this expensive and dangerous practice immediately.

Sincerely,
Vera Olbrycht’

Here are some more of Vera’s photos.

Waverley Council poison in the gutter

More Waverley Council poison in the gutter and thence to Bronte beach

As Roy and HG say, "When too much is barely enough . . . "

Support Vera, locals, little critters and email Waverley Councillors:

councillors@waverley.nsw.gov.au

May commons sense and sustainability return to Waverley,

M