The Effects of Herbicides on Plants Used for Subsistence by Native Americans on Yakima Training Center, Washington

May, 2001. This report looks at the relationship between pesticide and herbicide application and the root systems of traditionally harvested Native American plants at the Yakima Training Center (YTC) of the U.S. Army. The YTC is a military training institute for operational live-fire training and logistical support. Access to this land on the training center is granted to members of the Wanapum Band and Yakima Indian Nation for harvest of their traditional root crops. The Primary questions examined in this report include: 1) What concentration of herbicides, if any, will be present in plant roots two weeks after spraying, after the end of the first harvest season, and approximately one year after spraying; and 2) If herbicides are present in plant roots, within what distance from the zone of pesticide application will plants with detectable concentrations of residues be found? This study does not address the health risks to humans associated with consuming roots containing residues. Rather, it attempts to provide information about whether the roots are likely to retain residues at all, and if so, in what amounts and for what duration. KEYWORDS: U.S. Army; Military; Herbicides; Pesticides; Yakima Training Center; Yakima Indian Nation; Picloram; Krovar-Oust mixture; Environmental Protection Agency; Native American Health; Root Crops; desert parsley; bitterroot; wild onion; yellow bells; cat-tail rhizomes; balsamroot; Pest Management, 280DP18006