Toxicity of Herbicides Tordon 22k

11/28/2014

“Fraud and falsehood only dread examination. Truth invites it.” Samuel Johnson

So what is the problem with herbicides? To get an understanding, I will evaluate one herbicide in detail. The chemical Tordon 22K was listed on the Manitoba Weed Supervisors Association website for control of leafy spurge and other weeds.

A quick overview read the material on the website provided by the company leaves you with the impression that eliminating the weeds that this product is designed for, is good for wildlife as well as government and industries. You infer that using Todon 22K has those same benefits, that this chemical is good for the environment as well as for government and industry. The work "Stewardship" is prominent and retained in your mind when you peruse the website. You are left with the impression that using Tordon 22K is safe and good for the environment and that by using it, you are a good steward of your land. The word "Expert" is also featured and you are left with the impression that experts are recommending the use of this product.

Tordon 22K

What the manufacturer website say about this product

-This is the only tool for effective control of deep-rooted perennials such as Leafy Spurge and Toadflax
-Residual. It provides control for an extended time between treatments
-It may take 5 years for it to be deactivated in the soil
-Clippings from grass or crops should not be used for mulching or composting
-Manure from animals fed the forage from treated fields should not be used with susceptible plants
-It should not be sprayed within a distance of 1.5 times the height of the trees or shrubs

What MSDS (Material Safety Data Sheet)
-Is flammable
-Can cause eye irritation
-Decomposition gases are toxic
-moderately toxic to aquatic organisms
-is NOT readily Biodegradable according to OECD test guidelines
-Bioaccumulation is moderate
-Mobility in the soil is very high

What does the manufacturer label say about Tordon 22K

ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS
- This product is moderately toxic to fish. Do not apply to any water bodies or in areas where the runoff from treated areas will reach fish-bearing waters. Do not contaminate water through spray drift, by cleaning of equipment or disposal of wastes.
- Tordon 22K may cause damage to sensitive non-target vegetation. Do not apply to irrigation ditches that contain or may contain water to be used for irrigation or domestic purposes

Do not apply to soils that are very permeable (textures of sandy loam to sand) throughout the entire profile and which also have an underlying shallow aquifer.

Do not apply to soils containing sinkholes over limestone bedrock.

Do not apply to soils whose surfaces are composed of severely fractured rock or unconsolidated gravel
and underlaid with an aquifer.

TOXIC to aquatic organisms and non-target terrestrial plants. Observe buffer zones specified under DIRECTIONS FOR USE.

Picloram is persistent and will carryover. It is recommended that any products containing picloram not be used in areas treated with this product during the previous season.
The use of this chemical may result in contamination of groundwater particularly in areas where soils are permeable (e.g. sandy soil) and/or the depth to the water table is shallow.
To reduce runoff from treated areas into aquatic habitats avoid application to areas with a moderate to steep slope, compacted soil, or clay.
Avoid application when heavy rain is forecast.
Contamination of aquatic areas as a result of runoff may be reduced by including a vegetative strip between the treated area and the edge of the water body.(1)

Discussion

So this is a product that lasts for years, is toxic to fish and to aquatic plants, does not breakdown easily, can kill shrubs and trees and remains toxic to trees, shrubs and other plants even in the manure of animals that eat treated forage and in the water that it gets into.

If this product gets into ground water, it will not breakdown because it only breaks down in water with exposure to sunlight in water.

I am not able to find on the internet what percent of farmers comply completely with the instructions on the product label. But I am assured by a concerned farmer's wife that not many would read the directions carefully and follow them.

Because of its persistence in the soil and its mobility in the water, The EPA Environmental Fate and Water Branch recommended that picloram should not be reregistered because its use would pose unreasonable adverse effects to the environment.(2)

Review of Dangers of using Tordon 22K
-Surface runoff and persistance in water unless exposed to sunlight
-Toxicity to fish in low concentrations
-Toxicity to non target species such as shrubs and trees and water plants such as milfoil
-Persistence in ground water
-Persistance in the manure of animals that graze on the treated pastures or with treated forage
-Persistance of this chemical in the soil
-The many conditions that Tordon 22K should not be used i.e. clay soils, compacted soils, gravelling or clay soils with an aquifer, sloped soils, and soils near a body of water. The many types of soils, where this product is not to be used describe most of Manitoba soils
-detrimental effect on the wildlife due to the loss of non target plants, trees and shrubs
-detrimental effect to wildlife in bodies of water due to the loss of plants and fish

The polished website of the manufacturer of this product is very misleading. This is not a safe product. It really should not be used on most of Manitoba's soils given that Manitoba has mostly clay and compacted soils. And that there is so much marshland and ponds in Manitoba. The reality is that this product is that is has a long lasting destructive effect on the soil, water and plants and animals. We have to ask ourselves how much we want to compromise the plants and animals in our biome.

We have to ask ourselves how much of an impact does this chemical have compared to the weed it is supposed to control?

When you look closely at the problems of leafy spurge, you discover this weed is not a problem of cultivated fields. That it not all that toxic to cattle and that cattle can be taught to graze it in as little as 8 days. (3) As well, there is biological control available with beetles. (4) So when we choose to use a poison, one with long lasting and devastating environmental effects, we are neither being safe nor using expertise. In fact we are contributing to the destruction of the wildlife of Manitoba's biome. Rather than demonstrating expertise and stewardship, we are demonstrating stupidity and ignorance.

(1)http://www.ivmexperts.ca/pdfs/Tordon_22K_Label_English.PDF
(2)http://www.pesticide.org/get-the-facts/pesticide-factsheets/factsheets/picloram
(3)http://onpasture.com/2013/11/18/cows-eat-leafy-spurge/
(4)http://www.agriculture.gov.sk.ca/Biological_Control_Leafy_Spurge

6 Comments

Elizabeth Senderewich

12/16/2014 04:05:38 am

There are good reasons for the Directions of Use on these commonly used herbicides, pesticides and fungicides. These chemicals have the ability to kill weeds they target and also a wide variety of other plants and animals as well. These chemicals have a toxicity that can poison the water animal’s drink. They can also contaminate the ground water that ends up in the water that we drink.
Most of the commonly used herbicide instructs the following in their directions of use:
Ground application only. Do not apply by air.
Do not mix, load or clean spray equipment within 10 meters of well heads or aquatic systems, including marshes, ponds, ditches, streams, lakes, etc.
Buffer Zones: Overspray or drift to sensitive habitats should be avoided. A buffer zone of 20 meters is required between the downwind edge of the boom and the closest edge of sensitive terrestrial habitats including forested areas, shelter belts, woodlots, hedgerows, and shrublands. A buffer zone of 35 meters is required between the prairie potholes, lakes, rivers, streams, wetlands, and wildlife habitat at the edge of these bodies of water. Do not contaminate these habitats when cleaning and rinsing spray equipment or containers.
Consult the label of the tank mix partner and observe the largest (most restrictive) buffer zone of the product involved in the tank mixture.
Do not apply during periods of dead calm, when winds are gusty or when wind speed is greater than 15 km/hr. at 2 meters high above ground and the site of application
Do not apply post emergence treatments if it is raining or if rainfall is expected within one hour of application
Do not graze treated fields or use green crops for feed. Wheat grain or straw from harvested treated fields may be fed to livestock.
Do not allow this chemical to drift to other crops
Observe minimum interval to harvest of 80 days after treatment
Do not treat wheat under seeded to legumes
Do not freeze

Unfortunately the habitat in Manitoba makes it virtually impossible to follow these directions. Only chemicals that can be safely used in Manitoba's habitat should be used

eric siverson

7/15/2019 03:42:33 pm

Does Minnesota and other state use Tordon 22 in road ditches ?

mpearl

7/16/2019 10:17:57 pm

I don't know about Minnesota. It was being used in Manitoba ditches where it killed fish hatchlings in fish hatchery a long distance away. Unfortunately, ditches in Manitoba are not treated as riparian zones, even though ditches are riparian zones. I hope that Minnesota, with its role as headwaters for the Mississippi, does have rules to protect its riparian zone ditches

brian

2/28/2020 10:58:39 pm

I use tordon to spray the gourse on farm, i am carefull, use a p2 mask, glasses and gloves, however after using this spray i end up with usa bloody raw nose and dry throat which evolves into coughing and mucus while by body obviously tries to get rid of the tordon... This lasts for a couple of days... I never catch colds or get any other kind of sickness or disease so it is obvious to me that tordon is the cause.. I would love to know if other users have noticed similar symtoms

Margaret

2/29/2020 04:16:23 am

There are medical facilities that specialize in Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Often those specialists have access to and are familiar with scientific research that is not generally known or available. From an ecological standpoint, nitrogen fixing plants are part of nature's succession and generally, if very prolific, are indicator plants of nitrogen poor soil. Eventually, once nature has remediated the deficiency of the soil, the next succession plant will overtake the nitrogen fixer. This New Zealand article suggests organic ways to get rid of gorse.
https://thisnzlife.co.nz/5-organic-ways-get-rid-gorse/

Edye

6/2/2020 07:35:09 pm

I wanted to thank you for publishing this. I went to classes in order to be able to buy and use Tordon on the leafy spurge on my property. At no time during class were we told to not use it in clay soils, nor did they teach how close to a tree or shrub you could spray. We were not taught how long it is actually viable in soils. We were taught it would degrade so vegetation could be planted in 2 years. I waited 4 years before I attempted to plant in the soil that was sprayed. I planted a tomato to check. It was dead in two days.

Toxicity of Herbicides Tordon 22k

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