Issue link: http://read.dmtmag.com/i/62071
USDA Scientist Reveals All Glyphosate Hazards to Crops, Soils, Animals, and Consumers Don Huber painted a devastating picture of glyphosate and GM crops at UK Parliament Dr Eva Sirinathsinghji In less than an hour, Don Huber, professor emeritus at Purdue University and USDA senior scientist (see Box) delivered to the UK Houses of Parliament a had a mind of its own (the Jacobsen walk behind greens mower, at Vancouver Golf Club). After that four hour stint was complete, you would often find me on Austin Avenue in Final Thoughts - Continued damning indictment of glyphosate agriculture as a most serious threat to the environment, livestock, and human health [1]. Since his letter to the US Secretary of State Tom Vilsak was leaked in February 2011, there has been a great deal of controversy over what Huber described as a pathogen new to science and abundant in glyphosate tolerant GM crops (see [2] Emergency! Pathogen New to Science Found in Roundup Ready GM Crops?, SiS 50). As he concluded in the letter: We are now seeing an unprecedented trend of increasing plant and animal diseases and disorders. This pathogen may be instrumental to understanding and solving this problem . His talk linked glyphosate to reduced nutrient availability in plants, increasing plant diseases, the emergence of a new pathogen, animal illness and success; successful friendships, partnerships, business dealings, and quality turfgrass management practices. Networking, when done honestly, has no rival. A team of individuals working together, to achieve a SUCCESSFUL Coquitlam with a weedeater and a can of gas (mixed fuel please), flinging rocks at BMW s and Mercedes .but making sure the driveway entrance was in perfect shape. My humble beginnings at the Vancouver Golf Club were followed by two different Universities, a grow in project, my first (and only)Superintendents job, sales and consultation and many days of volunteering for golf tournaments in the Lower Mainland. The one constant throughout my growth in this Industry has been my involvement with this Association. I was a two-year Director in 1999-2000, and re-joined the Board in 2003, until last month in Victoria. I have had a unique view of the fish bowl for over a decade. My career grew up understanding how the Industry moved, why it did so, and where it could potentially go with everyone s involvement. I wouldn t have had it any other way. I value my time spent, commitment, and partnership with this Association as much as I value my education and experiences, from this Industry. Networking is something that cannot be bottled, it is not for sale, and it does not come in different shapes and sizes. It is a mentality, a frame of mind, and used correctly, leads to common goal is achieved through networking. This Association and its partnerships with other likeminded Associations offers more of these opportunities today than ever before. I heard a story in Victoria when discussing the networking mindset , that should be shared with everyone s manager who has told them there is no money to go to the Conference. This particular individual found a product, through discussion on the trade show floor, with other delegates, that saved the business he was employed with over $20,000. The story continues that the employees of this business submitted costs to go to the Conference of $2000. Easy math says they just paid for themselves for the next ten years. I know your Board will be working hard to create a Return on Investment template that you can share with the powers that decide on managing your networking ability; this is a wonderful idea, one that should be supported and used. I make this challenge to every member who is not allowed to attend the Conference, due to budget cutbacks . Bring the person who makes the decision on your behalf. Help them to understand how valuable this opportunity to network with all of our peers, the educated elite (presentors) possible effects on human health (see [3, 4] Glyphosate Tolerant Crops Bring Death and Disease, Scientists Reveal Glyphosate Poisons Crops and Soil, SiS 47). The conversion of US agriculture to monochemical herbicide practice has resulted in the extensive use of glyphosate herbicides. Coincidentally, farmers have been witnessing deterioration in the health of corn, soybean, wheat and other crops, and epidemics of diseases in small grain crops. All are associated with the extensive use of glyphosate, which has increased further since the introduction of glyphosate tolerant, Roundup Ready (RR) crops. Glyphosate immobilizes nutrients required to Continued On Next Page and your Board and membership actual can be. Engage them, make them another one of our partners. The Association ran a separate track for these people, in Victoria this year. We know we need them, and we want them to be our partners. It simply makes the whole operation (our livelihood as well as theirs) run more efficiently and is more effective. The days of us and them are over. Engaging the student on the weedeater from Austin Avenue all the way to the Greens Committee Chairperson, or the Mayor of a City has come. This is not idle banter; this is a factual opinion of how our Industry needs to evolve, grow, survive and flourish to be successful. No more personal agendas, it is now time for an organized, structured understanding of our Industry from top to bottom. Supporting a structure with a common goal or vision is always difficult as everyone has their own opinion. As the membership of any Association does, it elects its Directors to ensure guidance and direction is a focal point. This is the beginning of structure and organization. The Directors throughout my tenure on the Board of the WCTA, have done an admirable job of moving this Association in a positive direction; while managing many different points of view. They are and will continue to be the members voice for focus and direction. I thank and respect every one of you who I have sat on the Board with over the years. The diversification of your careers, experiences and opinions allows this Association to remain a solid entity. Furthermore, your ability to promote this Associations benefits is second to none. I have learned from all of you and appreciate your help throughout the years. I am truly humbled to have worked with you, and am a better person for knowing all of you. Most certainly everyone understands the amount of effort it must take to run an Association of this nature. Both Executive Directors and their staff have been nothing short of structured and focussed throughout the years, to ensure that you, the membership, maximize all possibilities presented to you through this Association. Their tireless efforts are rarely acknowledged publicly; but I can ensure you this Association would not be where it is today, if not for their hours (and decades) of hard work. I personally thank you all. Please remember the value of what this Association stands for; it benefits us all, from every baseball and soccer pitch to every field complex to every golf course, park, greenspace, bowling green and green roof. Together we are so powerful, focussed and organized. Together we can help each other achieve success and become pillars of respect for the communities in which we work and the provinces we live in. I will leave you with this: Leaders who have a strong dose of optimism are more likely to accomplish tasks, compared to realists who give many reasons as to why these tasks won t work. Optimism is a discipline that allows us to accomplish cutting edge tasks, create new systems and tools to be successful. Optimism can create an open and transparent culture; one where leadership is demand oriented, and holds everyone accountable to high levels of performance, while encouraging creativity and a free flow of information... - Creating Value in a Crowded Market Place, Dr. Oren Harari (you tube — Cisco Partners Summit, 2009)