Farmer spraying glyphosate onto property.

White Clover

I would advise the OP to have some faith in the farmer. The OP clearly states that he is not familiar with farming and has later said that he doesn't actually know what the farmer was spraying so we will have to assume that the farmer does as he is the one with skin in the game.

The conclusion that we can draw from the information that we have received is that the thread title is totally misleading and is bordering on hysteria.

tesla_newbie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120456643#Comment_120456643

The only “ skin in the game “ that the farmer has is financial , the person who started this thread has his entire families health at stake , the farmer might well not waste an ounce of spray and still between mist drift and general fumes , the effects on his neighbours could still be severe

OP, most farmers are utterly indifferent to anything bar the health of their own wallet, they see it as their birthright to ride roughshod over the concerns of neighbours and will go into ultra defensive mode if the slightest criticism made

roosterman71

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457042#Comment_120457042

Every businesses skin in the game is financial FFS. Ryanair aren't flying planes for the love of little Johnny being able to get a week in the sun for cheap. Or Apple making phones so people can call each other. Or the local shop selling food so you don't starve.

Was there drift? Be madness to spray where there's wind blowing it all over the place. That makes no business sense. Would ya agree?

Last paragraph is inflammatory horseshit which you get from people largely ignorant of agriculture. Though of course maybe you have many examples of farmers riding roughshod over anything

893bet

Effects could be severe? Your mask is slipping.

A single “exposure” could be severe. Lacking a definition of severe or exposure makes it difficult discuss but I don’t believe there is any research to show any severe effects from a single exposure from a field away (and this exposure was the OP and their family in the house at night rather than put in their garden having no a bbq….).

OP I assume you are still alive? Eating organic as best you can? Fair play. You ah e far more exposure to pesticides from the non organic food you eat and often from drinking water. Farmers definitely have more to do to protect water ways. Based on the info you have provided this farmer hasn’t done anything illegal or immoral. A non-confrontational conversation might be a great start. And if ye get friendly he might give you a text to let you know he is spraying and you can ensure you have windows closed and no cloths on the line for that 1 hour.

amacca

As others have said its unlikely he was spraying glyphosate on a crop not yet mature....add to that he probably chose that time as the conditions were suitable....not many go at it at night out of choice as much as it will work best.

Of course he could be one of those ninja farmers killing off his competitors crops.

If people were willing to pay the additional increases for food that would result from reduced yield and/or give two **** about large retail chains continuously driving down prices I'd say a lot of farmers would gladly leave the sprayer in the yard/accept bans on sprays!

Tonynewholland

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457042#Comment_120457042

So what do you see as a solution to this. How far away from a boundary ditch should a farmer spray or should all sprays be banned in your opinion. You do know that it's governments that license these products for us in food production and not farmers.

If the OP is living beside land used for tillage it's going to be sprayed several times a year.

two wheels good

Now the best consolation offered to the OP is that it's probably not glyphosate at this time of year it's some other pesticide instead.

Be assured OP, if it wasn't glyphosate this time it very probably will be on another occasion.

You will find legal requirements and recommended codes of practice on pesticide use from the EPA or the Dept of Ag or Teagasc. e.g. required margins at field boundaries, precautions for watercourses. How close was the spray boom to your boundary? If necessary measure the proximity of tyre tracks to your boundary, estimate length of the spray boom.

When you speak to the farmer it would be useful to know exactly what's being sprayed, the brand and name of pesticide. Don't be fobbed-off with "just a weed killer/fungicide". Each one has a specific ref number with associated precautions and hazards, info readily available online.

Some neighbourly courtesy would have been welcome to be informed beforehand.

White Clover

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457042#Comment_120457042

Give over with the sensationalism, generalisations and hysterics.

It's highly likely that this is a troll thread. We do seem to get them very regularly on long weekends.

White Clover

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457170#Comment_120457170

Some sense of entitlement in this post.

Also, The OP has admitted his ignorance of farming and you are advising him to interrogate a Professionsl Spraying Operator and to estimate boom lengths etc !!

Cop on to yourself. We can clearly add you to the list of people on this thread that hasn't a clue what they're talking about.

Waffletraktor

From description it's a sclerotinia fungicide for petal fall on osr.

There's soo much red tape these days if a product was not able to be drank neat and expect no ill effects it wouldnt be on the market nevermind a few hundred mg of active to the acre.

tesla_newbie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457082#Comment_120457082

I doubt it, a lot of farmers live for the days they get to show off their machinery so not being able to spray would be a fun spoiler

tesla_newbie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457168#Comment_120457168

At least two hundred metres from a dwelling at any point in the field

tesla_newbie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457230#Comment_120457230

Yes , imagine the entitlement of expecting a courteous heads up when a toxic chemical is being sprayed near someone’s home

the irony , the sheer arrogant entitlement that farmers have will be their undoing but I’ve no doubt they’ll plough on bull headed , why change the habit of a lifetime

roosterman71

No need to inform anyone only record it for the department. The OP doesn't even know who uses the land and the work was done at night.

What entitlement do farmers have? Spraying crops is permitted, and is one of the things allowed to increase yields and in turn keep food prices low.

tesla_newbie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457661#Comment_120457661

Using any kind of coal was permitted in cities thirty years ago, didn’t make it safe , that toxic chemicals are legally permitted for use is due to lobbying by chemical companies and farm bodies, well-being of the wider public is an after thought

893bet

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457572#Comment_120457572

Agree. And the land was there before the house. All sites for new houses need to be 2 ha in size so so that you own the boundary distance from farm land. Be responsible for your own safety I say.

J.O. Farmer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457572#Comment_120457572

How do you know if that's a safe distance or not?

At a guess given that 2 metres was deemed enough with Covid it probably is but is 200m a random number you picked or have you data to support it.

tesla_newbie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457721#Comment_120457721

No , I personally wouldn’t care if cows were bawling across the boundary fence or even slurry was spread , my only gripe is with pesticides as I’ve asthma and so do my two kids , not anti farmer , just challenging some intransigent attitudes

Tonynewholland

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457572#Comment_120457572

That rules out most crops near a dwelling. What do you suggest this land should be used for. Even grassland needs to be reseeded from time to time and sprays are used to control weeds

roosterman71

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457762#Comment_120457762

Countryside life comes with challenges

tesla_newbie

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457751#Comment_120457751

Because the further the distance the less potent the drift , two KM is not practical , Ireland isn’t the American corn belt

Siamsa Sessions

OP asked what seems like a genuine question and got honest, helpful replies.

This is subsequently descending into insults, mostly from a single poster new to this forum.

Could Mods have a look?

two wheels good

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457230#Comment_120457230

No need to take that tone with me.

In trying to assist the OP I've suggested:

-he ask the farmer for accurate information about the product he's spraying

-he find details of the regulations\recommendations for safety margin at his boundary and compare them to the actual safety margins applied by recalling what he witnessed.

I'd say my contributions in this thread have been more factual and helpful to the OP than many - particularly yours.

Grueller

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457566#Comment_120457566

The irony of a poster that has the name of a premium brand car in their username throwing the insult of showing off machinery at farmers🤦‍♂️

roosterman71

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120458083#Comment_120458083

I don't think there is any regulation for boundry distances, except for water related areas. Have a look here:

https://www.pcs.agriculture.gov.ie/media/pesticides/content/sud/Irish%20National%20Action%20Plan%20for%20the%20Sustainable%20Use%20of%20Pesticides%20-%20February%202019.pdf

Section 4 seems to be the relevant chapter

J.O. Farmer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457851#Comment_120457851

200m at any point in the field isn't practical either as you correctly point out its not the American corn belt.

2 metres might be enough based potency decreasing with distance, beyond that the potency of the drift could be low enough to a negligible effect on people's health.

Sheep breeder

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/120457230#Comment_120457230

Agree with what your saying, tillage fields are tram lined to spray to correct distances consistently and a lot of sprayers and tractors are gps to spray correctly nowadays. Spray products are licensed to specific crops and each have approved spray number (pcs) which the farmer has to record the field, date, application rate, and has to use the nozzle on the sprayer to suit the crop and the height from the crop in his record book. No farmer is allowed to over spray the crop and at the cost of spray products nobody is abusing spray used. Tillage crops are sprayed by qualified persons who has done crops courses and has the tickets for the machinery used. Most crops are walked by agronomist before spraying to check what is to be used.

Furze99

Noticed a couple of hilly fields up the road from us that have been in grass and grazed by sheep for 30 years have turned very yellow and brown despite the wet spell.. at least one bungalow on 1/2 acre adjacent to this. So presumably some form of glyphosate or herbicide in the sprayer.

walterking

City boy with no experience of farming who has recently moved to a rural area makes wild assumptions based on nothing other than his own uneducated thoughts and wildly exaggerates the scenario.

If you can't understand rural life you should not live rurally.

And your assertion that your front door is 5-10m from the field is most likely utter BS

greysides

Thread closed.

I'm too busy to sort this now. I did leave a warning so later there will be consequences.