Petition Against Herbicide Treatment Gains Momentum; Town Officials Take Notice

East Haddam resident Matt Rockwell started a petition on change.org yesterday to stop the scheduled herbicide treatment using glyphosate on the Lower Moodus Reservoir planned for July 18. The petition is addressed to State Rep. Melissa Ziobron, State Senator Art Linares, the DEEP and the town of East Haddam. Within 24 hours, the petition has over 130 signatures, and town officials have started to take notice. 

After the response, Patch went to East Haddam First Selectman Mark Walter to get his reaction. While Walter stated that the lake and the treatment of aquatic plants falls under the jurisdiction of the CT DEEP, he stated the Board of Selectman were available for residents to manage a conversation on the topic. 

"The town is not going to be able to answer the question 'is this treatment safe,'" Walter told Patch Thursday afternoon. "But we can have an exchange with residents and the DEEP on the issue."

"Residents who are concerned can come to the Board of Selectman at our next meeting, July 17, and present the issue," Walter said. "It can either be brought up during public comment, or residents can contact me directly in advance and we can get it on the agenda, which hasn't been finalized yet."

"The DEEP is there to do a job, they have the scientific education and background to do this for the town, and we work in a partnership with them," Walter said. "But, if resident's feel that this information is incorrect, we, as the Board of Selectmen will take this seriously, and work with the public and the DEEP to engage in a conversation about this and work to come to a resolution. We are always here to listen to resident's concerns."

"There is a real balancing act with the recreational use of the water, and respecting mother nature," Walter continued. "Lake Hayward has been treated for years, and if you swim in our reservoir, you notice the much more abundant aquatic plant life. I think the bigger challenge is not from the commercial, professional application such as this, but the private use of chemicals. Efforts need to be taken to monitor the more abundant runoff created by legal chemicals used by private homeowners on the lake."

Walter stated he plans to start taking steps now to look into the issue.

"I'm going to start making phone calls now and reach out to people, so we can expedite the process," said Walter. "I'll also be reading reports and research so if the issue does come up at the Selectmen meeting, I can be prepared."

The petition and resident's reactions have also caught the attention of State Representative Melissa Ziobron. Yesterday, Rep. Ziobron shared Patch's article on the topic on her Facebook page, and asked readers for their thoughts. Here's what some folks had to say:

#Glyphosate has previously been shown to be an “endocrine disruptor”, which the National Institutes of Health has shown to have long-term effects on reproductive health. They can be very dangerous at low levels, thus restricting the amount allowed will not be effective.

Lycott Environmental is a very well known company in this field of work. Aquatic weeds can be a major problem, and they have to be controlled in certain situations.

Against glyphosate in the reservoir. There are other natural methods to help control water lilies that do not involve potentially toxic chemicals. A petition has been started if you haven't seen it yet...

Patch's own article has gotten several comments as well, as well as the link on our Facebook page and the petition itself. Tell us, what's your reaction to this planned herbicide treatment?