Dangerous Ditches
Manitoba’s “war on weeds” comes complete with powerful herbicides, questionable spraying practices and collateral damage. by Larry Powell Leafy Spurge. Photo Credit; Idaho Weed Awareness Committee Many governments in North America believe, a good way to ensure successful food production, is to help farmers keep plants out of their fields which can cut into their yields and their profits. To achieve this, potent weedkillers, some with unsettling safety records, are often pressed into service to destroy these "weeds" in ditches before they can spread to adjacent fields and food crops. For most lawmakers, this must seem a natural extension of a chemical system of agriculture which has come to dominate the developed - and, increasingly - the developing world, as well. As a result, those who might have liked to chose a different path, are being increasingly marginalized. Manitoba is no exception. According to an official statement from the province, "Noxio