Palmer criticized for herbicide use

PALMER -- The city's use of an herbicide this summer has resulted in a warning from the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation and the ire of environmental advocates.

Earlier this summer, Palmer public works employees sprayed RoundUp, a household herbicide available in local stores, along the railroad tracks in town and beside the fences of baseball fields in an attempt to control weeds. When a Valley resident noticed the dead foliage last month, he began making some calls that resulted this week in DEC sending a letter notifying the city it was in violation of state law.

"I'd like the public to be aware," said Dan Elliott. Elliott lives in the Wasilla area and was visiting Palmer in July when he saw the brown grass along the railroad tracks in the city. On another day, he spotted the same kind of dead foliage by the baseball fields near the Mat-Su Borough building.

"Obviously if it's against the law, I'd like the law to be followed," Elliott said. "If it turns out the city is permitted to spray anywhere except along the railroad tracks, they should let the public know."

And this appears to be the case.

According to DEC, the city cannot spray herbicides along the state-owned railroad tracks, even where they are inside Palmer limits and managed by the city

"They needed a permit because it was a state right-of-way," explained Rosemarie Lombardi, an environmental specialist with the Palmer DEC office.

However, she said the city is free to use RoundUp on city land as long as it is following the guidelines provided on the product's label.

Considering factors such as the severity of the violation, intent and cooperativeness, Lombardi said DEC has a variety of enforcement options. The mildest would be a warning, whereas the stiffest would be a referral to the state attorney general for prosecution. In the end, Lombardi said, she opted for a middle-of-the-road approach by mailing Palmer an official notification of violation.

Lombardi said while it is not legally required, DEC also provided the city with notification signs similar to those schools must use when spraying an herbicide. She said legal requirements to notify the public would be up to the municipality -- Anchorage has such an ordinance on the books, whereas Palmer does not.

"It's a good thing to do, at least letting people know something has been applied," Lombardi said, although she pointed out that residents and property owners in the city also use the product and do not put up such signs.

After investigating the situation and visiting Palmer public works, Lombardi described city officials as "very apologetic and cooperative." She said the city has certified applicators on staff who are trained specifically on how to use RoundUp.

Apologetic, cooperative, trained or not, Palmer should not be using the herbicide without notifying the public, according to the Alaska Community Action on Toxics. The nonprofit advocacy group's director, Pam Miller, says she feared Palmer would get just a "slap on the wrist."

"It's kind of shocking, really, that the city of Palmer didn't know that it needed a permit to spray this chemical," Miller said. "It's not something that should be treated lightly."

Miller pointed out that Gov. Tony Knowles banned the use of these herbicides along the Alaska Railroad tracks several years ago because of public concern over possible environmental and health effects. She said especially when the product is being sprayed in areas where children might play, the public should have a say in whether or not RoundUp or similar types of herbicides are used.

This was one of Elliott's primary concerns as well. He said if he had small children he would want to know if the ground and grass had been treated with an herbicide, especially in popular areas such as downtown Palmer. He said he noticed the dead foliage just days before the Palmer Pride picnic, a celebration during which children play and eat on the grass near the railroad tracks.

"With the uncertainty, I'd probably like to stay away," Elliott said of areas treated with herbicide. He said at the last the public should be notified so they can make that choice.

Palmer appears to be set to follow this advice. Public Works Foreman Ron Boehm said this is the first year he knows of that the city has used RoundUp. In the future, he said, they will not spray it along the railroad tracks. However, on city land such as along sidewalks where there is a weed problem, he said they will continue to use the herbicide as needed as long as there isn't reason to be concerned about it getting into the storm drains.

"It's the RoundUp people use in their own yards," Boehm said. "It's really not that harmful."

At the same time, Boehm said the city will put up signs so people will know the area was recently treated.