Pubdate: Fri, 06 Sep 2002
Source: New York Times (NY)
Copyright: 2002 The New York Times Company
Contact:  http://www.nytimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/298
Author: Christopher Marquis

COCA SPRAYING POSES NO RISK TO COLOMBIANS, US DECLARES

WASHINGTON, Sept. 5 -- The American-financed aerial destruction of coca 
crops in Colombia meets United States regulatory standards and does not 
endanger people or the environment, the State Department said today in a 
report to Congress.

The department's antinarcotics bureau, which oversees the program, 
concluded that the herbicides used and the manner in which they are applied 
"do not pose unreasonable risks or adverse effects to humans or the 
environment." Advertisement

That determination, which was immediately deplored by some environmental 
groups, could free money from Congress for an aggressive advance in the 
effort to eradicate coca at its source. The department has set a goal of 
killing up to 300,000 acres of coca this year, 30 percent more than last year.

The month-old government of President Alvaro Uribe has given American 
officials wide latitude in carrying out the spraying, which will involve 18 
crop-dusting planes by year's end. But the program, which began in 1994, 
has been trailed by controversy, both because of the unknown health effects 
in Colombia and by its failure to curb the overall amount of coca being grown.

Senator Patrick J. Leahy, Vermont Democrat and chairman of the 
appropriations subcommittee that finances the operation, said he would need 
to study the report before releasing about $17 million needed to buy the 
herbicide mixture.

Mr. Leahy froze that money in legislation approved earlier this year. The 
law requires that the State Department certify that the eradication program 
meets the regulatory controls required in the United States and does not 
threaten the public's health or the environment.

"There are reports of health problems and food crops destroyed from the 
fumigation," Mr. Leahy said. "Spraying a toxic chemical over large areas, 
including where people live and livestock graze, would not be tolerated in 
our country. We should not be spraying first and asking questions later."

In preparing its report, the State Department was required to consult with 
the Department of Agriculture and the Environmental Protection Agency. 
While Agriculture Secretary Ann M. Veneman reported that the health risk 
was "minimal," the E.P.A. was less categorical, and State Department 
officials refused to say whether they considered the agency's position as 
positive.

In a review forwarded by Stephen L. Johnson, the assistant administrator, 
the agency said the main ingredient in the herbicide used in Colombia, 
glyphosate, known by the trade name Roundup, is widely used in the United 
States with "no unreasonable adverse effects."

But the E.P.A. noted that an additive in glyphostae could cause acute eye 
irritation. In the United States, the agency said, the herbicide is 
typically sprayed from low-flying helicopters, not planes, and steps should 
be taken to avoid having it drift away from the target areas.
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