Do current guidelines protect against 2,4-D?
By Matt Berres
Staff Writer

2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid: suspected human carcinogen, poisonous by ingestion, moderately toxic by skin contact.
Target: broad-leaf plants, such as dandelions.
History: Key ingredient in Vietnam's Agent Orange.

And every year, applied to all Albion College lawns.

2,4-D kills broad-leaf plants by overstimulating cell growth. It came on the market in the mid-1940's as an effective and selective herbicide.

But the issue of its use hasn't been entirely Ôweeded out'.

Recent studies link 2,4-D to non-Hodgkin's lymphoma: a cancer of the immune system that also damages lymph nodes, the spleen and blood cells.

2,4-D is sprayed on all campus lawns... including athletic fields and the Quadrangle... every year, in mid to late May.

In 1988, campus-wide concern over 2,4-D health risks prompted a new committee to study the college's use of the herbicide.

The committee dissolved a year later and hasn't met since.

In 1988, the 2,4-D Committee members included Kenneth Kolmodin, Jr., director of facilities operations; DeWitt "Dewey" Obert, grounds supervisor; Jeff Foust, grounds crew employee and chair of the physical plant safety committee; Gail Stratton, assistant professor of biology; and Thomas Jackson, '89, student representative.

After thorough research, the committee recommended continued use of 2,4-D, but only under the following guidelines: ... posting signs where the herbicide was applied;
... monitoring ongoing research of 2,4-D;
... informing the college community of other chemicals regularly used on campus lawns;
... mandating protection practices for employees applying 2,4-D;
... meeting one year later, to assess the situation.

Have these recommendations been followed? Currently, no college employees spray 2,4-D. The spraying is contracted out to Arbor Lawn... a certified herbicide applicator.

The college's decision to employ a private company for 2,4-D wasn't directly related to the committee's recommendation, according to Kolmodin.

He said a federal regulation requiring certification for herbicide applicators was the real reason.

"No one at the college was certified at the time," Kolmodin said, "so we had to contract out."

Since 1989, the college has trained several employees as certified applicators. They do small-scale spraying, while larger jobs are contracted out.

Each year, Arbor Lawn applies 2,4-D to all college turf areas... totaling 38.6 acres.

The lawns are sprayed between the spring and summer semesters, to minimize exposure to the campus community, Kolmodin said. Last year's price tag: $2,933.

In keeping with the committee recommendations, Arbor Lawn does post signs to alert the public of spraying, but some say this isn't enough.

Ruth Schmitter, professor of biology, pointed out one problem: "Little children and animals can't read signs."

Regardless, this committee recommendation has been met. Others, though, haven't been looked at in years.

For example, no one here has formally kept up with 2,4-D research since the committee dissolved, but research continues nationwide.

In 1991, the National Cancer Institute found a "positive association" between 2,4-D and Canine Malignant Lymphoma, the canine equivalent of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in humans. Kolmodin said he knew nothing of the study.

This connection between 2,4-D and health problems isn't new. NCI linked the herbicide with non-Hodgkins lymphoma as early as 1988.

It's also been associated with nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, headaches and temporary loss of vision.

It was the committee's job to weigh these considerations. For the 2,4-D committee to be re-established, new members would be needed. Jackson graduated, and several other committee members are no longer at Albion.

Facilities operations and grounds still work closely with the biology department, Kolmodin said, but their contact is "informal only." Why is the controversial 2,4-D still used?

The reason is weed-free lawns. Facilities operations and grounds have researched alternatives, but "nothing was rated as being effective, and nothing [new] has been on the market since," Kolmodin said. Not everyone supports 2,4-D.

Wesley Dick, professor of history and Ecological Awareness Club advisor, disapproves of 2,4-D use and herbicides in general.

He said the college's practice is purely for cosmetic and aesthetic reasons. "It seems so unnecessary, we could be setting and example of restraint."