Environment
Mankind needs to learn to respect nature instead of trying to control it.
Please Read "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson
CONSERVATION
Please Don't Spray for Mosquitoes
All living things play a vital role in the ecosystem. Mosquitoes are a food source for fish, predatory insects, bats, birds, dragonflies, spiders, and other mosquitoes. They also filter feed, turning over organic matter and helping recycle nutrients back into the ecosystem. Mosquitoes are also pollinators, helping plants reproduce. Here are some other reasons why you might not want to spray for mosquitoes:
-
Effects of chemicals: Some people and pets may experience eye, skin, nose, or throat irritation, or breathing problems even cancer after being exposed to chemicals.
-
Pesticide residues: Pesticides may be left on outdoor surfaces like boardwalks and furniture after spraying.
-
Small swimming insects: Oil surfactants used to reduce water surface tension can cause tiny insects to suffocate and disrupt the entire food chain.
-
Whether natural or synthetic, broad-spectrum insecticides are highly toxic to a wide variety of insects, not just mosquitoes.
-
Mosquitoes can become resistant to insecticides. See reference [1] below.
-
Insect resistance to insecticides has been found throughout the world.
-
What happens when mosquitoes not only become completely resistant to pesticides, but also more aggressive?
A few years ago, I went on a fishing trip to a wilderness area in central Ontario, Canada. It was so remote that we heard wolves howling at night and saw bears and the northern lights. I took mosquito repellent but to my surprise, I did not need it. The lodge owner said the area had never been sprayed and he had cataloged over 40 different species of dragonflies. Some of the dragonflies were a beautiful iridescent blue, red and green. It was the dragon flies that kept the mosquitoes under control.
Florida has over 100 species of dragonflies, and some say there are 169 species recorded in the state. Florida is home to a total of 187 butterfly species, the most of any state east of the Mississippi River. However, the Vineyards Community Park in Collier County has a butterfly garden with no butterflies. While spraying might be somewhat successful against floodwater mosquitoes, the Aedes mosquito, which can spread yellow fever, dengue fever, and chikungunya, breeds in containers not in easy-to-reach places. The Aedes mosquito lays its eggs in containers, pots, cans, bottles, closets, inside garbage, and indoors. It lays its eggs above the waterline. When the water level rises, the eggs drop, hatch, and mature. Those conditions are less than ideal for mass spraying campaigns.
Mosquito spraying in Collier County Florida is done when mosquitos are present. In other words, after you have been bitten. Larvicides treatments disrupt the food chain depriving fish of their natural food by killing beneficial larvae that feed on mosquito larva. Dragon flies (on the other hand) are always on the lookout for their primary food. Pyrethroid insecticides continue to be the primary means for control of adult Aedes. Resistance is primarily due to gene mutations. Multiple mutations can result in highly resistant mosquito populations. Mosquitoes can't develop resistance to dragonflies. People do not develop resistance to pesticides.
Since 2003 to 2024, I have traveled eleven times for over 32 weeks all over the Brazilian Amazon rainforest in five different Brazilian states and have only seen two mosquitoes during all of my travels. When you have a balanced ecosystem, pest problems will be easily managed. I spent two weeks living with local residents in an Amazonian village called San Antonio de Matupi located deep in Amazonia. I did not need to use mosquito repellent or mosquito netting because there were no mosquitoes. I questioned several people who said there was no malaria in the area. Malaria does exist in Brazil but it is very rare in cities and towns.
Insecticides kill predatory insects like Dragonflies that have mosquitoes as their primary food source. The Mosquitoes have a much shorter reproductive cycle than the predators and the end results in more Mosquitoes than before. That is not to mention killing beneficial insects like honey bees and butterflies. Insect-eating birds and bats are also vulnerable and people cannot help being exposed to spraying. Some of the insecticides are extremely deadly to humans and some are systemic in the plants and the nectar from the flowers of sprayed plants will kill bees and butterflies. Spraying insecticides up and down the rivers and ponds is enormously expensive and an ecological disaster.
Window screening, mosquito netting and repellent are some effective ways to keep from being bitten. Mosquitoes typically come out at dawn and dusk. Dragonflies will protect us from all species of mosquitoes all the time.
Please read "The Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson. DDT has been banned but some of the insecticides in use today are much worse. Thank you for taking the time to read this. My ActBlue link is: https://secure.actblue.com/donate/arthur-oslund-can-house-district-82-1
CLEAN WATER
It's important for everyone to have access to beaches, forests, and springs. That's why I support wildlife conservation efforts.
Pesticides are killing our wildlife and destroying native habitat. We can advocate for controlling the use of pesticides like Glyphosate and Neonicotinoids.
New Federal Study: Extremely Toxic Pesticide Breakdown Products Found in 90% of Streams Sampled Across U.S.
The Florida Right to Clean Water amendment is our best hope. Visit floridarighttocleanwater.org and give Mother Earth a gift worth receiving.
How Harmful are
LAWNCARE CHEMICALS
As a a golf course superintendent (Greens Keeper) for 10 years, I learned a lot about lawn safety.
Notice the yellow warning signs placed on a lawn after a professional lawn care treatment. Ask your lawn care provider for a list of all chemicals put on your lawn during the entire year. Look the chemicals up on the Internet searching for effects on children and pets. The commonly used lawn herbicides like 2-4-D are essentially plant-growth hormones. They cause the plant to "grow itself to death". That is why you see the dandelions turn upside down after being sprayed with 2-4-D or other similar chemicals. 2-4-D is one of the two main chemicals sprayed from airplanes as a herbicide in Vietnam (Agent Orange). Pets, children, and adults exposing bare skin (feet or hands) to lawns treated with chemicals risk dangerous side effects. A professional dog trainer said that many people attribute cancer in dogs to exposure to lawn care chemicals. Your dog or cat could walk through lawn care chemicals and later lick its feet. The chemicals can be absorbed through the skin and be tracked into the house from a treated lawn. While treating lawns, the chemicals can be inadvertently sprayed onto sidewalks or relocated by rain. The fumes are also dangerous. Many of the chemicals are known to accumulate in the body and are known to cause cancer.
Studies Link Canine Cancers To Lawn Chemicals
http://expand-your-consciousness.com/studies-link-canine-cancers-to-lawn-chemicals/
My Dog Ate Fertilizer, Now What?
http://www.petmd.com/dog/care/dangers-lawn-chemicals-your-perfect-lawn-killing-your-pet
Household Chemical Exposures and the Risk of Canine Malignant Lymphoma, a Model for Human Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3267855/
Recommended reading: "ContamiNation" by McKay Jenkins, My Quest to Survive in a Toxic World. Please help to make everyone aware of the potential dangers of lawn care chemicals and to take appropriate action.
Please help to make everyone aware of the potential dangers of lawn care chemicals and to take appropriate action to protect children and pets. P.S. And Adults A word about lawn weeds. The weeds are green are they not? They can also contribute to food for birds, rabbits, bees, etc. I like the dandelions yellow flowers and call them "Spring Mums", they mostly bloom only for a few weeks in the spring. If you don't like the dandelion flowers then just mow them. Clover not only produces food for wildlife, but the flowers also give a pleasant scent. Clover adds nitrogen to the soil that helps the grass thrive. In the past, clover seed was sometimes added to commercial grass seed. Other weeds have beneficial properties. Do we really need a perfect weed-free lawn? How can I maintain a reasonably attractive lawn without using chemicals? Healthy grass will tend to choke out or at least reduce the number of most weeds. In this part of the country, the soil is very likely to be acidic and most grass species do well in acidic soil. I apply a light dose of lime and lawn fertilizer every two or three years using a handheld spreader. Of course, increased fertilizing will probably result in increased mowing frequency. Keep the height of cut at least 2 ½ inches to give the grass a better chance to "smother" the weeds by reducing the sunlight going to the weeds. Watering in dry weather is good but there is no need to overdo it. Grass develops a very fibrous root system that also helps choke out the weeds. Why are you bagging the lawn clippings? I have never been able to understand why some people insist on bagging their lawn clippings. It makes more work and creates yard waste that requires some kind of disposal. Set your mower on "Mulch" and try to cut when the grass is dry. Wet grass does not mulch very well but sometimes it is required. The clippings (if any) from the previous mowing will be mulched when dry weather slows the growth and helps with mulching. Mulching reduces the need for fertilizer and is recommended by the county to reduce yard waste. Feedback welcome. Please support candidates that have a healthy environment at the top of their agenda.
​
Abomination
‘It’s an abomination’: battle brewing over proposed US laws to protect pesticide companies | Pesticides | The Guardian