U.S. lawn-care industry fighting back against pesticide bansBy JOAN LOWY
Scripps Howard News Service
January 17, 2005- Fearing that a Canadian movement to ban the use of pesticides on lawns will take root in the United States, the lawn-care industry has thrown down the gauntlet - literally.
"The gloves are off," declares an industry ad running in trade magazines under a picture of masculine-looking leather gardening gloves lying atop a lush green lawn.
"Yes, legislation and regulations have been throwing the green industry some rough punches," the ad says. "And we're about to start fighting back."
The ads are underwritten by
Project Evergreen, a trade association formed by pesticide makers, applicators, garden centers and mower manufacturers that plans to launch a national public-relations campaign this spring touting the health and lifestyle benefits of thick, green lawns.
The green industry, as the lawn-products industry calls itself, has reason to worry. Increasing concern about the impact of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers on human health and the environment is fueling
a movement to ban or restrict the "cosmetic" or "aesthetic" use of artificial chemicals for lawns and gardens.
In Canada, the province of Quebec and nearly 70 cities and towns - including Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and Halifax - have passed laws banning or restricting the use of pesticides for lawn care.
Some activists are predicting that pesticides will become the next tobacco. "Pesticides are a bit like secondhand smoke - if you can smell your neighbor using them on their property, then you're being exposed, too," said Michel Gaudet, president of the Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides, in St. Bruno, Quebec.
The picture in the United States is more complicated.
Over the last several years, the pesticide industry has successfully lobbied state legislatures to pass what are known as "pre-emption laws." These give states responsibility for pesticide regulation and prevent cities and towns from enacting their own laws. So far, 30 states have adopted pre-emption laws.
"Local communities generally do not have the expertise on issues about pesticides to make responsible decisions," said Allen James, president of RISE (Responsible Industry for a Sound Environment), a pesticide-industry lobbying group.
"Decisions are made much more carefully and the train moves much more slowly" at the state level. [Where they can concentrate their cash]
At the same time, however, 20 states have adopted laws requiring signs or some sort of public notification when pesticides are applied to lawns. Dozens of communities have also adopted policies barring or restricting the use of pesticides on school property, public ball fields and parks.
Beyond Pesticides, an environmental group in Washington, has responded to Project Evergreen's "gloves are off" ad with a copycat ad that features a pair of feminine-looking gardening gloves decorated with daisies over the headline, "Get a Grip."
"The chemical lawn care industry is worried that the word is getting out on the toxic hazards of lawn pesticides," the ad says. "It is possible to have a green lawn without toxic pesticides."
A team of medical researchers with the Ontario College of Family Physicians, a Canadian professional society for family doctors, released a report last year that analyzed 250 previously published epidemiological studies from around the world on possible adverse effects of pesticides on human health.
The report found "consistent positive associations" between popular pesticides used in lawn care and cancers, reproductive problems, neurotoxic effects and other serious illnesses.Pets and wildlife are at risk, too. Another study, by scientists at Purdue University in Indiana, found that
Scottish terriers were four to seven times more likely to develop bladder cancer if they had been exposed to lawn chemicals.
But industry officials say pesticides must pass 120 different tests before they can be marketed in the United States. The Environmental Protection Agency determines how much human exposure to a particular pesticide is safe.
However, roughly half of homeowners admit they don't read or follow label directions when applying pesticides and synthetic fertilizers to lawns, often using significantly more than the recommended amount, lawn-care experts said.
"The unintended failure to follow some small part of the label - a minor misapplication - does not jeopardize human health," James said. "It takes a massive misuse of the product to cause harm."
The manufacture of specialty pesticides - lawn products as well as indoor pest killers - is a $2.5 billion annual industry in the United States, James said.
A recent survey sponsored by Organic Gardening magazine in conjunction with the National Gardening Association estimates that of the 90 million U.S. households with yards, about 5 million are exclusively using organic methods, 31 million are using a combination of organic and chemical methods and 35 million are using primarily chemical methods.
"This confirms what we've suspected for a long time, which is that a significant portion of people are interested in or moving toward organic methods," said Scott Meyer, editor of Organic Gardening. "Not everybody has adopted the full idea of having an organic lifestyle, but a lot of people are saying, 'I know what I don't want.' "
On the Net:
www.projectevergreen.com (Pesticide industry)
www.beyondpesticides.org
(E-mail Joan Lowy at LowyJ(at)shns.com.)
