--- title: "US lawmakers urge opposition to Colombia’s Amazon aerial spraying plan" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/us-lawmakers-urge-opposition-to-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plan" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/us-lawmakers-urge-opposition-to-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plan" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/us-lawmakers-urge-opposition-to-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plan.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/us-lawmakers-urge-opposition-to-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plan" category: "Politics" area: "Latin America" published: "2026-10-30T00:45:37.763Z" source_reported: "2026-10-29T17:52:47.000Z" updated: "2026-10-30T00:45:37.763Z" trust_score: 70 critic_score: 70 hype_score: 15 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-10-30T01:00:07.067272+00:00" --- # US lawmakers urge opposition to Colombia’s Amazon aerial spraying plan *A letter led by Rep. Mark Pocan warns that restarting herbicide spraying could harm health and the rainforest, while Colombia proposes a pilot on 1,000 hectares using glufosinate ammonium.* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 70 of 100, higher is better. Two full reports and five digests corroborate the central claim, with specific lawmakers named. - Craft 70 of 100, higher is better. The reporting clearly separates the lawmakers' concerns from the Colombian government's arguments. - Hype 15 of 100, lower is better. The headline accurately reflects the content of the articles. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - US lawmakers led by Rep. Mark Pocan sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging opposition to Colombia’s plan to restart aerial spraying of coca in the Amazon. - The letter warns the spraying could threaten human health and fragile Amazon ecosystems and notes the proposed use of glufosinate ammonium, a herbicide banned in the EU. - Colombia’s pilot would target up to 1,000 hectares in Putumayo, while the country remains the world’s largest cocaine producer with a record 261,000 hectares of coca in 2024. - Centre‑rated outlets provided detailed context and quotations; left‑rated digests reported only the basic warning. On 29 October 2026 a coalition of 19 US lawmakers, the letter’s lead being Rep. Mark Pocan, D‑Wis., wrote to Secretary of State Marco Rubio asking the administration not to support Colombia’s plan to restart aerial spraying of coca crops in the Amazon rainforest. The lawmakers warned that the practice could endanger human health and damage the region’s fragile ecosystems. Colombia’s president, Abelardo de la Espriella, has proposed a pilot project to spray up to 1,000 hectares (2,471 acres) of coca in the Putumayo department, bordering Ecuador and Peru. The pilot would replace glyphosate with glufosinate ammonium, a herbicide that lost EU approval in 2018. The country remains the world’s largest cocaine producer, with coca cultivation reaching a record 261,000 hectares in 2024, according to United Nations data. The proposal revives a strategy suspended in 2015 after the World Health Organization classified glyphosate as probably carcinogenic. Critics argue that aerial fumigation has failed to curb cultivation and can push farmers to clear new forest areas, while supporters claim it offers a faster, safer alternative to ground operations. > "We have serious concerns about both health concerns for people in that region and environmental concerns in such an environmentally sensitive area," Pocan told the AP. > > — Mark Pocan, U.S. Representative **261,000 hectares** — Record coca cultivation in 2024 (United Nations figures cited by centre‑rated reports) ## What the coverage left out No right‑rated outlet ran the story, creating a blindspot on the right. Additionally, none of the left‑rated digests mentioned the record 261,000‑hectare coca cultivation figure or the specific 1,000‑hectare pilot size that centre‑rated reports highlighted. ## Who covered it Shares of the 8 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 63% (5) - Centre: 37% (3) - Right: 0% (0) 0 of 8 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-10-30T01:00:07.067272+00:00. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 3 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-10-30T01:30:10.145Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left - All four left‑rated digests (The Independent, AP News, The Independent US and La Silla Vacía) led on the fact that a group of US lawmakers is urging Secretary of State Marco Rubio not to support Colombia’s aerial spraying plan. Each digest highlighted the warning that the programme poses risks to human health and the environment. La Silla Vacía added that the Democrats argue the strategy has not been effective in reducing coca crops. None of the left digests included the record 261,000‑hectare cultivation figure or the specific pilot size of 1,000 hectares. ### Centre - Centre‑rated outlets (WKMG, WBAL and Winnipeg Free Press) provided the most detailed coverage. WKMG and WBAL reproduced the full text of the lawmakers’ letter, quoted Rep. Mark Pocan’s statements, and noted the deadline of 13 November for a response from the State Department. Both reports cited the record 261,000‑hectare coca cultivation figure and described the pilot’s 1,000‑hectare scope. They also identified glufosinate ammonium as the proposed replacement herbicide and mentioned its loss of EU approval in 2018. WKMG quoted environmental activist Andrew Miller, who warned that spraying could push cultivation deeper into the Amazon, and Colombian Senator Sandra Chindoy, who called the Amazon “not a spraying laboratory.” The Winnipeg Free Press digest echoed the AP summary without adding new detail. ### Right No separate framing summary. **Provisional coverage gap:** right. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding. ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - mixed: 1 - high: 4 - veryHigh: 3 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [The Seattle Times](https://seattletimes.com/news/us-lawmakers-urge-trump-administration-to-oppose-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plans) — US lawmakers urge Trump administration to oppose Colombia’s Amazon aerial spraying plans - [La Silla Vacía](https://lasillavacia.com/en-vivo/democratas-se-oponen-a-que-ee-uu-apoye-fumigacion-aerea-en-colombia) — Democrats Oppose U.S. Supports Air Fumigation in Colombia · Global Voices - [WBAL](https://wbal.com/us-lawmakers-urge-trump-administration-to-oppose-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plans) — US lawmakers urge Trump administration to oppose Colombia's Amazo - [Winnipeg Free Press](https://winnipegfreepress.com/arts-and-life/life/greenpage/2026/10/29/us-lawmakers-urge-trump-administration-to-oppose-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plans) — US lawmakers urge Trump administration to oppose Colombia's Amazon aerial spraying plans - [The Independent](https://independent.co.uk/news/colombia-amazon-donald-trump-mark-pocan-marco-rubio-b3075860.html) — US lawmakers urge Trump administration to oppose Colombia's Amazon aerial spraying plans - [Associated Press News](https://apnews.com/article/amazon-marco-rubio-colombia-aerial-spraying-coca-02a25587bcfe878c3b8ebcd737b8afde) — US lawmakers urge Trump administration to oppose Colombia's Amazon aerial spraying plans - [The Independent (US)](https://the-independent.com/news/colombia-amazon-donald-trump-mark-pocan-marco-rubio-b3075860.html) — US lawmakers urge Trump administration to oppose Colombia's Amazon aerial spraying plans - [WKMG](https://clickorlando.com/health/2026/10/29/us-lawmakers-urge-trump-administration-to-oppose-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plans) — US lawmakers urge Trump administration to oppose Colombia's Amazon aerial spraying plans ## Questions **Who led the US lawmakers' letter opposing the spraying?** The letter was led by U.S. Representative Mark Pocan, a Democrat from Wisconsin, and signed by 18 other lawmakers, including Alexandria Ocasio‑Cortez, Rashida Tlaib and Jim McGovern. **What does Colombia’s pilot plan involve?** Colombia proposes a pilot to spray up to 1,000 hectares of coca crops in the Putumayo department of the Amazon, using the herbicide glufosinate ammonium instead of glyphosate. **Which herbicide is slated as a replacement and why is it controversial?** The replacement herbicide is glufosinate ammonium, which is controversial because it is no longer approved for use in the European Union due to health‑risk concerns. **What health and environmental concerns were raised?** Lawmakers warned that aerial spraying could harm human health and damage fragile Amazon ecosystems, while environmental groups said it could drive deforestation by pushing coca growers into more remote forest areas. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/politics/us-lawmakers-urge-opposition-to-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plan. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "US lawmakers urge opposition to Colombia’s Amazon aerial spraying plan", https://mediabias.news/politics/us-lawmakers-urge-opposition-to-colombias-amazon-aerial-spraying-plan