Earthworms and Roundup Herbicide

A new study published in Water, Air and Soil Polution asserts that pesticides produce lethal effects on earthworms. With the objective of detecting chronic, sublethal effects of the widely used herbicide glyphosate (Roundup), an experiment was performed using the earthworm Eisenia fetida as a mondel organism. Earthworm adults were randomly assigned to three glyphosate treatments: control (no glyphosates), regular dose for perennial weeds and a double dose. The matrix population model built showed that while the control population had a positive growth rate, both glyphosate treatments showed negative growth rates. The results suggest that under these sublethal effects, non-targeted populations are at risk of local extinction, underscoring the importance of this type of study in agrochemical environmental risk assessment. The manufacturers tell us that glyphosates become inert when they hit the soil, but this study is one more example of the harmful effects that herbicides, such as Roundup, have on soil fertility. Active earthworm populations in soils are an excellent sign of soil fertility.