A CONCERNED resident is calling for action over pesticides she says have been known to cause cancer and pose a threat to wildlife.

Mitchie Alexander, 51, from Bevendean in Brighton, has started a petition to fight the use of these pesticides in the city.

She said: “The pesticides currently being used by the Brighton and Hove City Council are extremely toxic.

“They have been known to have links to causing cancer and they can’t be good for wildlife.”

Mitchie is hoping to put pressure on the council to consider alternatives to the chemicals.

She said: “In March 2016 the council unanimously adopted a motion promising to phase out the use of glyphosate and seek non-chemical alternatives.

“Sadly, these promises have not been kept and for the last three years and Brighton and Hove City Council has continued to use pesticides.

“We want to see an imminent end to the use of glyphosate as promised back in 2016.”

Glyphosate is the active ingredient in many weedkillers.

Mitchie said the council claimed alternative methods were too expensive.

But she believes using traditional methods would be a far better way of dealing with the issue.

She said: “It would just be better having people manage the weeds by hand.

“I know some people who have a steam machine to manage them but that can be very expensive.”

Mitchie said she also had the city’s wildlife in mind when she started the petition.

She said: “Dandelions are considered weeds but we want to keep them.

“They are one of the earliest food sources for bees.

“It must have a terrible impact on the pollinators.

“You can see the damage from the pesticides from seeing the yellow patches of grass in playgrounds.”

Mitchie’s petition needs to reach 1,250 votes before it will be considered and debated at a council meeting.

She currently has more than 600 signatures.

She said: “The petition got signed online by more than 100 people the other day so it’s really picking up now.”

A council spokesman said: “We’re very aware of concerns about the use of weed killers and in particular glyphosate.

“We have been reducing our use of weedkillers for some years but have not yet been able to eliminate it altogether.

“We would like to reassure

residents that our use of glyphosate is in line with Government guidance.

“In operational terms there is no easy or cheap solution for

eliminating use of glyphosate while fulfilling our statutory duty to keep our highways clear of hazards.

However, some extra funding has been allocated in this year’s budget to help address this.

“We are continuing to look at options for phasing out use of glyphosates.

“Our intention is to offer councillors a range of options for alternatives to glyphosate at a meeting in the summer where it can then be debated.”