Pet flea treatments polluting Britain's rivers

[Catherine]

This is alarming. Many cats and dogs receive flea treatments and the chemicals used in the treatments are now appearing in British rivers. In some cases the levels of chemicals are high. In some cases the levels are very high.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/01/...ms-rivers/


Once again we have gone ahead with and action like a flea treatment without considering its consequences. Once the treatment is on the pet we don't give it another thought. These chemicals kill insects and they are present in high levels in streams where they are killing many more insects. We have no idea what the impact of those insect deaths will be. What happens to birds and fish that eat the insects. They will have higher levels of the chemicals in their systems. Would it be safe to eat fish from those streams. Are those streams used for drinking water or irrigation? What about swimming in the water. What happens when the water reaches the ocean? 

We really don't have an answer to these questions right now. We won't know until things go wrong.