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DDT: A poison to the ecosystem (Revision)

When we think of the word poison, the brain usual is concerned about the impact of human health and not the health of other organisms. But the poison of DDT, which has come an important pesticide to the lives of many people in developing nations, has been a way of life in nations that are threatened daily by the disease of malaria. In a country such as Ghana in west Africa where thousands of people die a year from the disease need the powerful pesticide to get rid of the mosquitos that carry the disease. The consequences to the ecosystem though are devastating. The food chain is completely destroyed as predators of the mosquitos will be infected with the poison and the predator of that predator will be infected and the cycle will continue. Although the pesticide is banned in the United States and other developed nations, DDT is a valuable but eco-dangerous product.

DDT has lasting effects on the ecosystem with an environment. When a mosquito is infected by the drug, it passes it on to its predator and the cycle begins. But regardless of these facts, people in developing nations continue to use this as a tool to help them fight malaria. So why do they continue to use this product when they know the environmental damages that the pesticide does. In order to answer this question, it is best to clearly define DDT. According to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), DDT is a common pesticide used for agricultural use that is banned here in the U.S., but is used in other parts of the world where agriculture plays a big role in the economy. Countries where agriculture is the cornerstone to their economy are found in sub-Sahara Africa and Southeast Asia. These regions are also far more likely to contract malaria or any other diseases transfered through a insect. It all makes sense why people would use this pesticide in their lives, but what they don't realize is that there are just as effective and safer alternatives. Also, while these countries are trying to save their economy, they are actually crippling it. In countries such as Indonesia and Tanzania where ecotourism is a huge factor to the economy, they rely on tourists coming to their countries for their unique ecosystems and spending their money while visiting. The number of tourists will decline if DDT is still used as the number of rich and diverse ecosystems will fall drastically and in turn, their economy will take a hit. Governments will need to make some important decisions in order to save their economy and more importantly, their environment.

The use of DDT must be banned from all countries if we want to save the very few ecosystems we have left. It has been proven that DDT is a poison that cannot be reckon with. DDT is an ecosystem-killer pesticide that protects against deadly diseases such as malaria, but can devastate an economy and an environment. We cannot wait until it is too late to do anything and our ecosystems are gone. Their are solutions out there, but it is up to us to find them.