Stop the pesticides

Spring is the time many of us look forward to with blooming magnolias, daffodils, tulips, iris, dogwoods and all the rest. Spring, however, is also the time I cringe every time I see those all too present yellow pesticide/herbicide signs on many lawns. All of this unnecessary poison kills organisms that are part of the web of life.

We see fewer and fewer butterflies and honeybees each season. Insects are declining and, with their decline, we see fewer and fewer warblers, vireos, thrushes and other insect-eating birds. Unnecessary fertilization of our lawns results in excessive phosphates in our aquifers, streams, rivers and ultimately Long Island Sound, where a condition called hypoxia is aggravated. Hypoxia means lower oxygen for fish, mollusks and crustaceans and all the higher life forms that create the biodiversity we love to see.

So please do not waste your hardearned dollars on products that will only decrease the biodiversity which we should all cherish. Please keep in mind that bees are essential to pollination of our fruits and vegetables. Finfish, shellfish, crustaceans and mollusks are an important food source, and birds and butterflies lift our day-to-day spirits.

Tim Chaucer Director, Milford Marine Institute, Inc.

Milford