Have you heard? Pesticides aren’t needed for a beautiful lawn!
What is a Pesticide?A pesticide is a chemical or microbiological substance that is designed to kill pests. Pesticides are by definition are toxic because they poison the pest. Pesticides include insecticides, herbicides, fungicides and rodenticides. Common examples are RoundUp, Killex, Weed and Feed, and 2,4-D. Lawn pesticides do not prevent pest problems, they only try to control them once they are present.
ExposurePesticides are all around us. They can be found in our soil, air, food, and even mother’s breast milk. If a pesticide is being applied to a lawn, it can be detected 15 metres away. Anyone living in an urban area in Saskatchewan breathes air with measurable quantities of 15-19 herbicides in late spring. Pesticides are also found in water. Drinking water in six Saskatchewan communities was tested and found to be contaminated with an average of seven pesticides.
Human HealthThe Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety has identified acute health effects in humans including nausea, eye, skin, respiratory and throat irritation, muscle spasms, and even death. Repeated exposure to pesticides has been linked to neurological problems, brain and lung cancer, immune suppression (which creates environmental hypersensitivity), leukemia, Parkinson’s disease, kidney damage, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and reproductive disorders, including endocrine disruption, low sperm count, and sterility. Children are most at risk as they typically play in grass and dirt, and put toys and hands in their mouths, activities that significantly increase their exposure to pesticides.
How to Protect You and Your Family· Do not use pesticides on your lawn and garden.· Pesticides are toxic. Be aware when they are being sprayed in your neighbourhood. · Keep kids and their toys indoors when pesticides are being applied and afterward, clean exposed surfaces. · Do not spray your pets (flea powder).· Use pesticide-free insect repellent like citronella.· Buy local organic food.· Wash all produce with a mild detergent.· Work with local school boards, daycares and sporting complexes to go pesticide-free.· Avoid pressure-treated wood.
To learn more about alternatives to using pesticides, please visit: http://www.environmentalsociety.ca/main/resources/publication/pesticide-publications/
Hi Arzeena,
ReplyDeleteSaskatchewan uses 1/3 of all the pesticides sold in Canada and Regina and Saskatoon are the second highest users of domestic pesticides. Do you have pictures of what pesticide free can look like? I was recently in Quebec and welcomed the fresh smell of green grass and aromatic scents of fresh flowers blooming all around me. They've been pesticide free for half a dozen years.