permaculture

[<permed@nor.com.au>]

>Mollison told a story about cadmium contamination in truck plots around
>Canberra, and that would be another nasty; but in that case it was supposed
>to be a side effect of fertidlizer applications, not pesticide. Like most of
>Bill's stories, I don't know any details
This story Bill probably got from me - I got it from a newspaper article 
in Sydney in mid 1980's - the cadmium component in super phosphate 
fertiliser accumulates in the soil, the sulphuric acid acidifies the soil 
and the cadmium mobilises to be taken up by plants - the vegies tested 
has 350 times the WHO acceptable cadmium level for human consumption.
>And remember that orchards used to get copper and arsenate of lead applied.
>That would be a counter-indication for some sorts of agricultural production
>on that land.
Arsenic is a big one on old banana farms around here.

Haven't had a chance to check it out yet but Russ Grayson alerted us to a 
series of articles in Sydney Morning Herald on health & environmental 
hazards of fertilisers in our food
URL:  www.smh.com.au/

Robyn