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Aug 19, 2009 07:30 PM | 10
The typical suburban home is an underestimated source of water pollution, according to research presented today at the American Chemical Society meeting in Washington, D.C. The reason? Lawns and gardens.
Water that runs off from these green acres typically picks up a load of fertilizers, pesticides and other potentially toxic chemicals, and washes them—via sewers or directly—into lakes, rivers, streams and even the ocean. Once there, joined by similar runoff from agriculture, the chemicals can drive a host of environmental problems, ranging from dead zones to contaminated fish.
Previous estimates of how much water pollution derived from the suburbs was based simply on rainfall. But horticulturalist Lorence Oki of the University of California, Davis, and his colleagues found that sprinklers and other irrigation techniques also led to significant runoff that, in some cases, carried more pollution with it from the eight neighborhoods studied in Sacramento and Orange counties than runoff after a rain storm.
Pesticides—both organophosphates and pyrethroids—were found in all the water samples, which were collected on a weekly, biweekly and monthly basis for more than two years. The majority of these pesticides, 60 percent, were purchased to control ants, according to a survey by the California Department of Pesticide Regulation.
But there is a simple solution to lawn runoff. A study at the University of Michigan, published online August 14 in the journal Lakes and Rivers Management , found that Ann Arbor's ban on phosphorous fertilizers for grass led to a 28 percent drop in the pollutant's levels in nearby Huron River.
Keeping lawn-care chemicals out of U.S. waters may be as simple as banning them—or at least cutting down on running the sprinklers right after applying fertilizers or pesticides.
Image: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Tags:
suburban home,
fertilizer,
water pollution,
suburbia,
dead zone,
fish advisory,
pollution,
suburban life
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10 Comments
Add CommentOnly regionally native grasses, which can be sustained by the rainfall of the region, should even be allowed. The only outside watering allowable should be limited to produce gardens and possibly trees.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI never use fertiliser on lawn (who wants is to grow quicker?). Nor weedkiller, that makes for a bit of work weeding at first but they are soon under control. Special tool or sharp knife to remove the persistent weeds like dandelions or plantains, who cares about the daises anyway they add to it . . And leave the cuttings where they fall: too many modern lawnmowers are designed like vacuum cleaners: with the old ones, you just took off the grass box ..
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThank you for reminding us all how frivolous and stupid lawns are. It's sad to see wide swaths of woodland and brush routinely cleared, seeded and doused with chemicals for the latest subdivision. That doesn't even include the gas pollution fand decibels levels of all the mowers, weedwhackers and leafblowers that suburban men are obsessed with. In the suburb where I live (on a lake) it seems local politicians avoid really spelling out how toxic pesticides and fertilizers are to the environment because of the wrath of the lawn care operators in my area.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisIt sounds to me as if it's not the lawns that cause the pollution as much as it is the lawn CARE. Grass by itself isn't bad. If anything, it's beneficial. It helps convert CO2 and prevents erosion. It's when you put chemicals on it that you create the problem.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisThe story and commenters misrepresent the source of the insecticides. In California, ant control products are most commonly used around buildings--not on lawns. More of these products are applied by professional applicators than by residents. Please do not see this as a "residential lawn" story--its not! It is a story about ant control around buildings.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisAs an ex farmer I am glad to see some focus put on urban neighbourhoods, I think all fertilizer and chemicals should be banned for urban use. Most of these products are not properly applied, take phosphorus for example, it should never be left laying on the surface as it does not move down into the soil profile it simply remains on the surface to be washed away with the first rain or application of water.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI was surprised to NOT see water consumption as an element of this article. Southern Californians get ALL their water from remote sources and waste it on yards. Then complain when their water "source" experiences dought. As a western Colorado farmer, I hate Mexifornia, and don't care if they poison themselves or dry up and blow away.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisI think lawns are boring any way... Grow your own food, be creative, start a revelution....get rid of the lawn!
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisOur entire yard is full of 15 10' butterfly plants, a dogwood, blue spruce, large bush trees along the side of our house, small bushes along the inside fence. 3 bird houses at the top of our screen enclosed back porch and large growths that protect empty areas. We also have a small pond that allows birds to wash and frogs to live. There are also 3 bird baths in multiple places. We have been certified by the Wildlife Federation for plant coverage and multiple large growths that allow for bunny births, multiple bird nests and an awful lot of nature animals that live here year round. Never, ever has any pesticide company been in our yard, unlike the yards. The only time any of our growths are watered is when its been 90 degrees or hotter for multiple days with no rain. This only includes the butterfly bushes and some flowers that fill spaces. Pesticide companies treat the lawns of 4 our of 6 neighbors and is disguisting. Although there are a lot of neighbors who don't care about animals or plants, we do our best and take care of the 3 yards next to us in the same manner. Unfortunately this is the best we can do to protect nature and keep our environment safe. We hope we are doing the right thing.
Reply | Report Abuse | Link to thisSo what do you think your rivers, streams and lakes would look like without turfgrasses to cover our open spaces? The fact is responsibly maintained turf areas, e.g., home lawns, parks, golf courses, sports turf, cemeteries, etc., represent one of nature's most effective biofilters keeping soils, silt/dust, pesticides, petroleum products and garbage out of our pristine environs. It's not the use of pesticides and fertilizers that are the problem. It's the misuse of them. Don't chastise the entire Green Industry for a problem caused by a few. If that was the way we addressed all social or environmental concerns, then I think we should ban automobiles because they kill people. . . . .
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