However, Roundup was more toxic to fish than was glyphosate. The surfactant is used to allow the compound to readily dissolve in solution and to keep the compound from balling up on the leaf surface. There is a very low potential for the compound to build up in the tissues of aquatic invertebrates or other aquatic organisms. Glyphosate is relatively non-toxic to honeybees. The compound is so strongly attracted to the soil that little is expected to leach from the applied area.
Microbes are primarily responsible for the breakdown of the product.
The time it takes for half of the product to break down ranges from 1 to 174 days. Because glyphosate is so tightly bound to the soil, little is transferred by rain or irrigation water. The herbicide could move when attached to soil particles in erosion run-off. Photodecomposition plays only a minor role in environmental breakdown. In water, glyphosate is strongly adsorbed to suspended organic and mineral matter and is broken down primarily by microorganisms also.