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‘One sip can kill’: why a highly toxic herbicide should be banned in Australia
Magazine article   Open access

‘One sip can kill’: why a highly toxic herbicide should be banned in Australia

Nedeljka Rosic, Joanne Bradbury and Sandra Grace
The Conversation
20/05/2021
DOI: https://doi.org/10.64628/AA.9add3fgs4
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‘One sip can kill’: why a highly toxic herbicide should be banned in AustraliaView
Published (Version of record) Open CC BY-ND V4.0

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Abstract

There’s a weedkiller used in Australia that’s so toxic, one sip could kill you. It’s called paraquat and debate is brewing over whether it should be banned. Paraquat is already outlawed in many places around the world. The Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority has been reviewing paraquat’s use here for more than two decades, and its final decision is due later this year. We are medical and environmental scientists, and have researched the harmful effects of paraquat, even when it’s used within the recommended safety range. We strongly believe the highly toxic chemical should be banned in Australia. The potentially lethal effects on humans are well known. In Australia in 2012, for example, a farmer died after a herbicide containing paraquat accidentally sprayed into his mouth. And our research has found paraquat also causes serious environmental damage.

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