Hill Top College
Hosted a cafe on:-
DDT
Speaker: Peter O'Pedun
One student knew the full chemical name of DDT Dichlor-Diphenyl-Trichlorethylene and told the others! The Ugandan government aims to reduce infant mortality rates for malaria. Some areas in Katakwi and Kumi districts have already been sprayed DDT. Government policy is that 80% of the people in a targeted area should agree to the spraying, which is restricted to inside households. The WHO has categorised DDT as not very dangerous yet USA banned its use in 1972!
DDT is a pesticide, used for killing mosquitoes. After spraying, DDT can stay in the environment for 15 years! Peter said that DDT’s number one problem is that it dissolves in fats. It creates holes in the cell membrane of plants, inteferes with ion exchange in animals and in humans, may cause vomiting, headache, loss of memory and poor sperm formation.
Yes or no to DDT?
The café turned into a highly contentious debate as to who would and would not support the spraying of DDT.
- It is cheaper to spray than to treat malaria.
- Most village houses are built from mud-bricks and semi-permanent structures. If they collapse, the pestcide will be exposed to the environment and eventually end up in the water bodies to affect plants, animals and aquatic life.
- Malaria helps to check out the rapid population growth
- Spraying DDT will cause Ugandan agricultural exports to be discriminated against in world markets.
- More money will be spent on research on diseases caused by DDT.
- There are other diseases in Uganda which are being ignored.
