Moreover, the growth of plant life in the
village has been seriously stunted. When exposure to pesticide started,
the coconut trees suddenly stopped bearing fruit so the villagers were
left with no other alternative than to cut them down. “The chemicals the
plantation uses might be good for their banana crops, but on our coconut
trees, it is destructive”, says Nanette Rodriguez, a villager. Their soil,
too, had become infertile, so growing crops for food and income has now
become very difficult. Planting food suddenly wasn’t an option they could
afford anymore. Even grass grew scantily among the place. Raising pigs,
chickens and other animals also proved to be extremely hard because numbers
of them just die every time a spraying occurs. Animals who wander into
the plantation or feast on the grass near their property also meet their
death. The villagers have also believe that their streams have also been
contaminated because a lot of animals refuse to drink from it and the animals
who do eventually die.
