Photo by Annie Tritt of Tyrone Hayes with one of his research frogs.
The January-February issue of Mother Jones has an interesting article,
The Frog of War, by Dashka Slater, about Tyrone Hayes and his fight with Syngenta and their herbicide Atrazine. It strikes close to home as I live in the Midwest. It’s a lengthy read (3 pages) but well worth it. The use of herbicides and pesticides produced with profit in mind is a concern, or should be, as the people who live and work in areas where such herbicides and pesticides are used are effected. The original intent, to eliminate or reduce plants and/or insects that significantly reduce crop yields is worthwhile. But, when it becomes detrimental to the health and the quality of life of residents in and around the area of use, don't such herbicides or pesticides need controls in place?
2 comments:
I've thought about that A LOT!! What it boils down to is profit over human health. That's why buying organic is so expensive. I'm not sure about where you are, but it's reeeally hard to find in small town Iowa. With Monsanto controling so much in agriculture, I'm thinking it'll be harder to find truely "organic" products in the future. There have also been many times that I've come to a little creek where in the old days kids could splash around and play, but now they're a total hazzard because of the field run off. Booo!! What are we doing to ourselves?! We're the only species who is actively and knowingly destroying our own enviornment and slowly poisoning our bodies.
It's good to hear your sensitivity to this issue! And with first-hand experience!!!
You're busy being a mom. Living where you live you can grow your own food. Probably do, too! Are there any Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs) groups in your area? You'd probably find them at a local farmer's market. Does Buy Fresh Buy Local have a chapter out your way? North Central Chapter of BFBL is in Kanawha (https://sites.google.com/site/bfbliowa/home/local-chapters/north-central-chapter). It'd be best if you could grow your own food but they may know an organic farm close to Humboldt though Kanawha is fairly close - 37 miles or so.
Last year I started square foot gardening (raised beds) and was very happy with the results. It allows a person to grow a lot of food in a small space.
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