An investigation into the spraying of pesticides at the Skeldon Estate during which workers were affected has found that while there was poor planning by the field department, there was no “significant physical symptoms among the patients treated”.
The report recommended that field management representatives should be stationed at strategic points, in radio contact with the airstrip to monitor progress and senior management should be more sensitive to complaints.
On August 29, workers of the Skeldon Estate were harvesting cane when an aircraft began spraying 2 4-D Amine and Igran on the fields, which they reportedly inhaled. Seventy-nine of them were treated with four of the workers initially kept at the Skeldon Hospital for observation while two were admitted. In a release at the time, the Guyana Sugar Corporation (Guysuco) had said: “It was alleged that some of the drift from the application affected a number of workers working in the cultivation approximately two miles from the application site”. Workers had protested over the incident and an inquiry was launched by Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud.
The report by the inquiry committee was presented at the Ministry’s boardroom on Saturday. Giving a summary of the findings and recommendations, Chairperson of the committee Dr Kumarie Jaipersaud said they visited the site and interviewed workers, union officials, management personnel and aircraft technical personnel.
She said the investigations found that the logistical arrangements for the spray application were adhered to but “trafficking of the dams was breached since there was no alternative route predetermined”. She said the workers were approximately 3.2 kilometres from the sprayed fields and medical personnel did not observe any significant physical symptoms among the patients treated.
Dr Jaipersaud, who is also the Director of Regional Health Services at the Ministry of Health, said too that “management’s response to the workers claim was not conciliatory”.
Recommendations made included wider dissemination of the intent to conduct aerial application of pesticides and stationing field management representatives at strategic points of the cultivation in radio contact with the airstrip to monitor progress and enforce access restrictions. Additionally, it was recommended that education of workers and union officials of the chemicals used on the estate be carried out and supervisory personnel including senior management staff should be more sensitive to claims of this nature.
It was stated that while it might be difficult to technically determine whether there was actually inhalation of pesticides, “the benefit must be with the workers since the symptoms of complaints were similar to those determined for 2 4-D.”
Other members of the inquiry committee included Marlyn Samad – Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) representative, Dr Harold Davis -Director of Agricultural Research, Basdeo Dwarka – Registrar of the Pesticides and Toxic Chemicals Board and Fizal Jafferally, community relations officer, who was not a member but an observer.
On receiving the report, the agriculture minister said the recommendations would be sent to the sugar corporation for implementation and necessary action regarding the “slippages”.
