Toxins

Pesticides
Pesticide free lawns
Pesticide free gardens
Endocrine Disruptors
Lead
Rodenticide and Raptors

Pesticides. Pesticides are designed to harm living things, and they do a good job of it. Unfortunately, the harm isn't limited to their target populations. Of 30 commonly used lawn pesticides, 16 are toxic to birds, 24 are toxic to fish and aquatic organisms, and 11 kill bees.* Birds die in fields sprayed for insect control, and the birds that survive suffer suppressed egg production.** Pesticides also affect children: a study published in the journal Pediatrics (May, 2010) linked exposure to organophosphate pesticides with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.

A study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (1987, 79:39-46) found home and garden pesticide use can increase the childhood risk of leukemia by almost seven times. And a study published by Lawrence Glickman, et al., writing in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (2004, 228[8]: 1290-1297), found that dogs exposed to herbicide treated lawns and gardens can double their chance of developing canine lymphoma and may increase the risk of bladder cancer in certain breeds by four to seven times.

Overuse of pesticides has caused weeds to evolve resistance to them. Many are becoming immune to multiple pesticides.*** Thus, we may moving back to the time before pesticides were ever invented, but with sorely degraded ecosystems and public health added to our challenges.

Many people erroneously believe the federal government regulates dangerous pesticides. The President's Cancer Panel stated in May 2010 that "the prevailing regulatory approach in the United States is reactionary rather than precautionary. . .instead of requiring industry…to prove their safety, the public bears the burden of proving that a given environmental exposure is harmful."

And according to the Pesticide Action Network, "EPA officials remain reliant on research data submitted by pesticide manufacturers, who do everything they can to drag out reviews of their products, often for decades."

Using pesticides harms species up and down the food chain--from the invertebrates at the bottom all the way up to the bald eagles (and humans) that eat fish contaminated with chemicals from terrestrial run-off. There are more life-affirming ways to manage a house, garden, and business. Continue reading to learn more.

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* Information provided by Environmental Association for Great Lakes Education.

** Pierre Mineau, senior research scientist with Environment Canada, quoted in Audubon magazine (March/April 2011, p. 40).

***"Widespread us of herbicides fosters immunity," Science News, July 2, 2011, p. 5.

Pesticide-Free Lawns.

You can have a healthy lawn without the harm and expense of pesticides. Here are some tips:

• Mow higher (set mower to 3 inches). Tall grass shades out weeds and encourages deeper root growth, allowing for less watering.
• Water heavily, but less often. Lawns need about 1 inch per week (including rainfall).
• Sow grass seed in the fall, which gives grass more time to get established before the growing season.
• Leave clippings behind after mowing. They will break down and put nutrients back into the soil.
• Aerate once each fall to correct compaction. However, the best natural aerator is the earthworm. (Note: pesticides kill the soil critters that earthworms feed on, so forego them for a healthy earthworm population.)

To learn more, visit EAGLE's safe lawn and garden page.

Pesticide-Free Gardens.

The key to a pesticide-free garden is to attract beneficial invertebrates (like insects and spiders) who will prey on harmful insect pests. The best way to do this is to plant a variety of native plants, which attract these helpful critters.

Even if you are growing vegetables, or don't want to forego your favorite non-native flowers, by including groupings of natives you will attract beneficials.

To learn more, visit EAGLE's safe lawn and garden page.