Think Before You Spray

Or don’t spray at all.  This is the time of year for fun in the sun, and for spraying killer chemicals all over ourselves, apparently.

The big news is this summer you can get weed and bug killer in jumbo size, so you can be ready for the giant insect that ate suburbia, I guess.

TV commercials show someone dousing their house in a copious jet spray of chemicals.  The music is upbeat and shows a woman who makes it look as effortless as pouring a glass of water.  I wonder what she's thinking.  I doubt she's thinking about what happens next.

The chemicals do not evaporate harmlessly, that's for sure.  Most often, it rains and the chemicals wash into the nearest body of water, but they don't dissolve harmlessly.

Keep in mind that the chemicals -- pesticides and herbicides -- are meant to kill weeds and insects.  Ever notice the warning label on these things?  Reads like poison, cause it is.

Once the chemicals eventually find their way into that stream there and that bay over there, bad things happen.  Water quality drops.  Plants and animals die.  Whole ecosystems wither.  People get sick.

Surely the government would not allow anything harmful to people to get into our hands.  Riiiiiiiight.

Think about it this way:  Healthy rivers and oceans mean healthy people.  They provide clean water, clean air, and lots of food.  So let’s treat them better.

Start by not dousing our yards and homes in chemicals you wouldn’t want near your kid or your dog or your glass of water.  So please, think before you spray, or better yet, don't spray at all.