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Green Lawns not Always Green Says Organic Writer

October 12, 2007 - Organic lawn care is catching on, and an event scheduled for 6:30 p.m.Tuesday, Oct. 9, at the Camden Public Library will help spread the word. That's when award-winning garden writer Paul Tukey, author of "The Organic Lawn Care Manual" and publisher of People, Places & Plants, will speak at the invitation of Citizens for a Green Camden.

Citizens for a Green Camden, a group of about 10, formed after one of its members, Marsha Smith, noticed a sign on a public lawn indicating a pesticide had been applied. She contacted friends who shared her concem about pesticides. Group member Patrisha McLean, for example, had been active on a committee formed to keep pesticides out of area lakes; member Beedy Parker has long championed the health and ecological benefits of organic lawns and gardens; and Laurie Woltrum "has worked tirelessly on the town policy and gathering information on organic lawn care," said Smith.

What's not green about lawns? Many receive too much fertilizer, which can pollute waters - simultaneously making lawns more susceptible to diseases, weeds and drought. Since most Maine soils have abundant phosphorus, for example, it makes no sense to apply a fertilizer containing phosphorus to most Maine lawns. The only green benefit of regularly oversupplying nutrients is to the bank accounts of some chemical manuiacturers and of retailers; and to the algae that overtake nutrient-laden waters. Also, according to the Maine Yardscaping Partnership - a coalition of Maine agencies and organizations that promotes healthy and ecological lawns - pesticides can be toxic if overused or carelessly applied. Pesticides include fungicides, herbicides and insecticides, which are applied to counter diseases, weeds and insects, respectively.

The Organic Consumers Association said, "Studies over the past three decades have linked common lawn and garden chemicals with cancer and kidney or liver damage, particularly in children and pets." Children and pets may be more susceptible to toxic chemicals because they are in close contact with lawns more often than adults are; kids and most pets are smaller than adults, so products they encounter can concentrate more in their smaller bodies; kids' bodies are still developing and may be more susceptible to certain chemicals at certain times; and young children tend to put more stuff, including soil and plants, in their mouths, since tasting is one way they explore their environment.

Many people don't realize products labeled as "Weed and Feed" contain synthetic herbicides, and thus apply the chemicals unknowingly. The OCA quotes Scott Meyer editor of Organic Gardening magazine, who compares using synthetic chemicals to "putting your yard on steroids." Over time, he said,"it weakens the system." Because of concem over the health and environmental effects of many synthetic lawncare chemicals, more than 100 Canadian cities, including Quebec, have restricted the use of pesticides on lawns and in public spaces, according to the Pesticide Action Network. Many US communities are adopting similar measures.

SOURCE: VILLAGE SOUP CITIZEN

DATE: 10-03-2007

Lakes:
Regions: Sebago, Belgrade, Rangeley, Moosehead, Sanford, Bangor, Katahdin, Embden, Houlton, Lincoln, Jackman, Presque Isle, Allagash, Calais, Mid Coast, Downeast


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