Green Healthy Lawns and Lots of Toxic Chemicals

Spring brings many things. A host of these are very desirable, especially for those of us who have been cooped up in our homes for the past several months. How many of us have feverishly wished for a favorable weather forecast so that we can plant flowers, ride bikes, walk dogs, orchestrate lawns, and listen to chirping birds? Yet, spring also brings us a medley of a different sort-a toxic soup of chemicals. Much of this soup isn't thrust upon us from the outside; disturbingly, we choose to expose ourselves, our children, our neighbors, and our pets to these harmful chemicals. In 2013, Americans spent over $700,000,000 on pesticides (cumulatively weighing over sixty-five million pounds) for use on their lawns alone (1). One would think that properly informed humans wouldn't make such unhealthy and selfish decisions.

Before we can change our ways, we need to consider the reasons why so many of us willingly volunteer to poison our communities each and every growing season. The reasons why we choose to spray, pour, or sift noxious chemicals on our lawns and gardens are varied and complex. Some of us have adopted a weed-free lawn as a cultural imperative. Most of the commercials advertising chemicals and chemical treatments speak of evil weeds that must be eliminated in order for a uniform lawn to be achieved. Others of us just want our roses or irises to produce spectacular blooms this summer, and, once again, we are told that pesticides are a prerequisite for this to happen. Others of us innocently assume that our government or neighborhood stores wouldn't allow the sale of chemicals that might be harmful to us when they are used in recommended ways. And, others, most peculiarly, seem to enjoy filling up their garages with "c...

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...es to pesticides. If you choose to reduce or eliminate their usage, you have taken a major step to creating a healthier environment for your family and your neighbors, be they humans, vines, critters or fowl. May we all have a wonderful, chemical- free spring.

Works Cited

1. Bormann, F.H., D. Balmori, & G.T. Geballe. Redesigning the American Lawn. New Haven, CT: Yale Univ. Press, 2010.

2. Lawn Chemicals. Pamphlet. Audubon Society, 2013.

3. "EPA phasing out of pesticide diazinon." Associated Press. Dec. 5, 2000.

4. Steingraber, S. Having Faith: An Ecologist's Journey to Motherhood. New York: Perseus Publishing, 2012.

5. Steingraber, S. Living Downstream: A Scientist's Personal Investigation of Cancer and the Environment. New York: Vintage Books, 1998.

6. Colborn, T., Dumanoski, D., & J.P. Myers. Out Stolen Future. New York: Plume, 1997.