By Cheryl Jahn

Glysophate Research

Glysophate research gets a boost

Jul 23, 2020 | 4:21 PM

PRINCE GEORGE – A UNBC research who has done extensive research in the field of forestry in the past is tackling a hot-button issue in this region: The use of a herbicide called glysophate, which is used to kill broadleaf plants and trees, leaving behind only coniferous trees. Forest companies have used the herbicide for years.

Now, Dr. Lisa Wood is going to study the long-term ecological impacts of its use.

“Since glyphosate-based herbicides have been used for decades in B.C. forests, and largely in the Interior and Northern portions of the province, and due to the importance of forests to our regional land-base, UNBC is the perfect centre for this type of research,” she says. “The local community is very interested in the topic, and many organizations are keeping close tabs on what my lab is up to.”

One of those who will be keeping a close eye on the research is the MLA’s for the riding in which the herbicide is predominantly used: the Prince George Timber Supply area.

Mike Morris has long advocated for the discontinued use of glyphosate.

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“It may be safe but I’m not going to get into the scientific side of it,” says Morris. “But the habitat issue is paramount for me. And when I see the moose populations down, when I see bird populations down, when I see fur-bearer populations down, we need to pull the plug on glyphosate.” But the science is exactly what Dr. Wood is all about.

Dr. Wood and her collaborators received a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada Discovery Grant worth $132,500. The funding will be used to support Wood’s research as well as multiple graduate students as well as undergraduate research projects.

An additional $149,226 NSERC Research Tools and Instruments Grant that will be used to purchase three new state-of-the-art growth chambers for controlled experimentation that will support her project and increase UNBC’s research capacity.