[ad_1]
The smell was evident when Chelsea Woolston traced 6,000 hectares of pastureland on the family farm surrounded by the spectacular Grampian Ranges sandstone cliffs.
"I would say" Mom, you sprayed again "and she said," Yes, yes, "remembers Mrs. Woolston.
"She sprayed Roundup excessively by hand … watering the garden, all the edges, around the driveways and mowing sheds."
Bernie and Dot Dunn in 2008.
At the age of 63, Dot Dunn was vigorously healthy and took her share of physical labor on the farm in western Victoria where she lived with her husband, Bernie.
But in the 51 months and a half of a diagnosis of pancreatic cancer in 2011, she was dead.
Bernie Dunn, former mayor of Horsham and former president of the Victorian Nationals, was devastated by the loss of his love of high school.
"Mom and Dad met at the age of 14 and 16, they were together as absolute soul mates since adolescence," Ms. Woolston told her parents. "They just had a nice relationship."
Mr. Dunn did not find any other partner and took the weed that his wife had sprayed so conscientiously.
In 2017, Mr. Dunn was also struck with pancreatic cancer at the age of 73, of a type identical to that of his wife.
Neither Mr. nor Mrs. Dunn had a family history of pancreatic cancer, which has been badociated with Roundup exposure in scientific studies conducted overseas.
Mrs. Woolston was blind.
Bernie Dunn in 2014.
"Exactly the same pancreatic cancer, same place, and he lived about eight months," she said.
"We firmly believe that it is [Roundup/glyphosate] who killed mom and dad prematurely, absolutely. Especially when we read their diaries and find out how much they used and sprayed.
"The oncologist said, because they were not genetically linked, that it was definitely an environmental factor."
Roundup's manufacturer, Bayer, denies that the lead product is carcinogenic and claims that its safety is supported by regulators around the world, including the US EPA.
However, the International Agency for Research on Cancer said that glyphosate was a "probable carcinogen".
Dot and Bernie Dunn.
In his political career, Mr. Dunn served as President of the Victorian Legislative Council. He then served three terms as mayor of Horsham and was a recipient of an order from Australia.
In a cruel irony, Dunn had tried to set up a chemical-free grain business in the late 1980s, his daughter recalled.
"He tried to maintain it for five years, but he said that he just could not do it, that there was no money and that he was not there. they continued, they went back, "said Mrs. Woolston.
But his parents viewed Roundup as "the safest chemical you can use," taking little precautions, generously spraying it on their property to reduce the risk of bush fires.
Ms. Woolston believes that Roundup should be labeled a carcinogen and worried that crops will be "drowned" in the chemical when they are destined for supermarket shelves.
At home, in Wimmera, it's a delicate subject, where people depend on the chemical to live.
"I'm very wary of that, if we really insist on how we feel about Roundup, we have a lot of farmer friends, that it could have a bad effect on them," she said.
"There is a big conflict over there, it's difficult, I know that if Roundup is banned, what will all these farmers do?"
But Ms. Woolston thinks that she owes her parents to raise awareness of the risks.
"That's why my parents would fight if they were here," she said.
"This has left a huge void in our family, we all have young children missing incredible grandparents, and we are missing our parents, they have just been stolen from their lives."
[ad_2]
Source link
