Question:
I live in a retirement community next to a large golf course. Is it safe for me to run my dog there (and, of course, scoop her poop)? They spray a lot of weed killer on the golf course. Sometimes it blows across our property.Also, is it safe for my grandchildren? My husband, who used chemicals as a farmer, died of cancer soon after he retired.
L.G., Palm Beach, FL Jul 18, 2004
Answer:
If I had my way there would be far fewer golf courses, and all of them would use organic methods of cultivation and "weed" control. I see these places as an abomination: poisoning and killing wildlife with herbicides and pesticides, and putting golfers, people like you and the dogs who romp across these toxic greens at great risk.So petition the management of this golf course to go organic, and threaten to sue them for allowing sprayed chemicals to drift across onto your property, which is illegal.State and federal governments and the chemical industry have failed to protect the public from pesticides. According to a disturbing report by the Pesticides Action Network North America (PANNA) titled "Chemical Trespass: Pesticides in Our Bodies and Corporate Accountability," the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has found pesticides in everyone it tested. Call PANNA at (415) 981-1771 to obtain a copy of the report, or download it from www.panna.org.
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