Would Gov. Rell Veto the School Pesticide Ban?

I don't know if a veto is a real possibility--my youngest graduated Foran High last summer, so its too late for me to protect him--but I hope that those of you with school age kids will join me in contacting the governor to let her know we care about this bill.

Here is what I sent:

Dear Governor Rell,


I am a physician, and mother of two children, both of whom attended public school here in Milford Ct.

I am greatly encouraged by the passage of HB 5234, protecting our children from the unnecessary health risks from the application of pesticides on school grounds. I am grateful to our legislative representatives for taking this forward thinking step.

I am aware that there will be major pressure from the commercial applicators of pesticides to have this bill vetoed. However as in the case of any new idea whose time has come, there will need to be new ways of thinking. These same businesses can delve into the huge market of natural lawn care and become leaders. Just as American car companies will eventually accept that low mileage or alternative fuels vehicles are the future, so will the chem lawn care companies find their market. The lawn care industry lobbyists will claim that the science linking acute and chronic illnesses to pesticides are weak. This is the same as our recent history of denial of the effects of greenhouse gases on climate.

There are myriad studies linking lawn care pesticides to short term and long term illnesses.

In the practice of medicine we rely on a risk/benefit ratio, if we assume that the risks of chronic exposure to pesticides are even half, a third,.. a quarter, of what we find in the medical literature, is it worth putting our children at that risk for such minimal benefit? ...when communities all over the US, and especially Canada have shown that they can provide attractive safe landscapes without the use of pesticides?

Thank you,
Laurel Lobovits MD

"Each year, we dump tens of millions of pounds of fertilizers and pesticides on our own backyards, thus poisoning birds and wildlife while creating one of the largest sources of pollution runoff in our lakes and streams."

John Flicker, President
National Audubon Society

"Every day of every week we are continuing in this country to expose children to chemicals whose toxicity is simply not known. As a pediatrician, I urge parents to think carefully about the choices they make, especially about pesticides."

Dr. Philip Landrigan,
Pediatrician and Director of the
Center for Children’s Health and
the Environment, Mount Sinai School of Medicine

Labels: legislation, pesticides

posted by ruehermel @ 2:35 AM 0 Comments Links to this post

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle

I just finished reading a fabulous book that I think some of you might enjoy. It's called Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver.

Barbara and her family made the decision to try to survive for a year only on produce they either grew themselves or were able to buy locally. The family describe their experiences as well as their reasons for, and the rewards of doing it. The way Barbara lays it out for us it becomes an amazing discovery.

Why do such a thing though? Leafy greens that haven't been frozen and shipped a thousand miles and actually taste green; (I swear I know what green tastes like after eating fresh lettuce just grown in my backyard one year); wax and green beans that are so crisp they snap like kindling when you chew them; tomatoes that are so juicy and sweet that you just want to eat slabs of them forever; and corn that tempts you to eat it uncooked.

This is a well-written, fun, entertaining, depressing and optimistic book all at once. It's depressing to realize that while the government on one hand is telling us to eat a balanced diet they are propping up an industry that grows only two crops, both of which make up the lion's share of all pre-packaged food sold, The optimism comes from knowing that we can make a difference in our own lives and that we don't have to play by their rules.

Labels: book review

posted by Chris R, Milford ECC @ 10:49 AM 0 Comments Links to this post