Bogota, Apr 28 (EFE).- Colombia’s deputy health minister said Tuesday that he expects the government to adopt the ministry’s recommendation to suspend the aerial spraying program for glyphosate, a powerful herbicide used to eliminate illicit crops.

The decision will not affect the commercial use of glyphosate, sold in the United States under the brand name Roundup, since those users may decide whether or not to use the chemical, said Fernando Ruiz in an interview with Caracol Radio.

Spraying of glyphosate has been one of the tools employed by the Colombian government to combat the planting of coca, the raw material for cocaine.

However, it has generated harsh criticism due to the risk posed by some of the herbicide’s potentially cancer-causing components, a situation that led the Health Ministry to recommend to the government that its use to eradicate illicit crops be discontinued.

In his Tuesday radio interview, Ruiz emphasized that glyphosate sold on the commercial level must come with a warning on the label about the risk the herbicide poses to humans.

This is based on “the newly-made classification by the World Health Organization” and the fact that this spurred the ministry to expedite its recommendation to the government.

The WHO-affiliated International Agency for Research on Cancer recently classified glyphosate as the first on a list of five probably-carcinogenic pesticides and herbicides.

The office of Colombia’s national ombudsman also backed the recommendation to suspend the aerial spraying of coca fields.

In a communique released Tuesday, the institution emphasized that, because of the complaints from indigenous communities in Putumayo province, on the southern border with Ecuador, it launched an investigation into glyphosate’s possible effects on human health and the environment.

Local Indian residents say that 15 water sources in the zone became contaminated due to aerial spraying of glyphosate.

The Putumayo residents also complained of damage to their health, natural resources, local crops, soil and ecosystems.

The problems caused by the herbicide in southern Colombia led to a legal dispute with Ecuador, which filed suit against Bogota in 2008 in the International Court of Justice over environmental and health damage caused by glyphosate that was carried by the wind over the border.

The matter was resolved in 2013 when Ecuador agreed to withdraw its lawsuit in exchange for Colombia’s payment of a $15 million indemnity to be distributed to the affected people.

In addition, Colombia promised not to use glyphosate any longer near the international border. EFE