ddt

Yarilis Chevalier Professor Jingyu Wang Env 11 14 June 2019 DDT and The Environment DDT was discovered in 1939 by Swiss chemist Paul Müeller. In its early days, DDT was a popular pesticide because it was toxic to a wide range of insect pests, yet it appeared to have low toxicity to mammals. DDT was also persistent, which meant the pesticide didn't break down rapidly in the environment and therefore did not need to be reapplied often and since DDT was insoluble it did not wash off by rain or other weather conditions. Although gradually throughout time it was discovered that many insects had developed resistance to DDT, and it was discovered that DDT did in fact pose to be harmful to the ecosystem. This discovery created wide public interest and made people aware that chemicals were polluting the environment. As a result DDT was banned for use in North America and other countries in the early 1970's. Though pesticides, such as DDT, may decrease the number of insects, throughout history it has been proven that there is a detrimental effect upon the environment, animals and humans as a result.              DDT is a colourless chemical pesticide, also known as dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, whose purpose is to eradicate disease-carrying and crop-eating insects. It was first isolated in Germany in 1874, but not until 1939 did the Swiss Nobel Prize-winning chemist Paul Müeller recognize it as a potent  nerve poison on insects In the book Silent Spring, Rachel Carson’s main concern is the widespread use of synthetic pesticides and their impact on the environment. Carson concentrates on a commonly used pesticide in the 1950s called DDT. She opposes the indiscriminate spraying of DDT because it has profound consequences on the environment, humans and animals. Carson collected information about how the DDT can cause cancer in humans, harm animals such as birds and remained in the environment for long periods of time. Subsequently, the chemicals in the pesticides are extremely harmful so she tries to raise awareness and convince others that there are better alternatives. The chemical pesticides used in farming affect the quality of water because of run off which then go into lakes or rivers. In chapter four, Carson concentrates on the water pollution caused by pesticides. The pollution can be unsafe for use and causes fish to die. An example used is a study done by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in 1960 that showed that “our waters have become almost universally contaminated with insecticides.” (pg.41) The pesticides are especially threatening to groundwater which is an important source of drinking water for humans. Consequently, the chemicals in pesticides can cause cancer and other harm effects on our health. Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) a stable chemical compound that is high in chlorine pesticide levels, notorious for its agricultural purposes (Martin et al, 2013) it has with no doubt aroused debates around the idea of its use. Silent Spring has clearly caused a debate for decades, one of the quotes from the book was “It is not my contention, that chemical insect - ideas must never be used. I do not content that we have put poisonous and biologically potent…” (Carson, 1962). Carson was not against the idea of DDT but simply its overuse, its great use regarding insect transferred diseases was of great help, still is (Souder, 2012). The following essay describes opposing views on the use of DDT, has its use led to a co-existence between humans and nature(Chris Park, 2013) or a more technology and science orientated belief (Chris Park, 2007). Sri Lanka and South Africa are two of the most successful countries that have used DDT to eliminate Malaria. Since 2007 no deaths have been reported as a result of malaria in Sri Lanka (World Health Organisation, 2012) and over 85% cut malaria related deaths in SA.