2008 Woodie Awards
The grass at UMass: An issue that cannot be 'ducked'
Lauren Rockoff, Collegian columnist
Issue date: 5/12/08 Section: Editorial / Opinion
The conclusion that landscape services has come to, however, is that there really is no known effective alternative to pesticides like there is for spreading salt. One proposed natural pre-emergence herbicide is corn gluten meal. Though it is able to prevent crabgrass from growing while not affecting the desired grass negatively, it has its problems as well. Corn gluten meal is not easily spread across lawns and tends not to work as effectively because it does not reach the root of all the crabgrass. Fish, squirrels, ducks, geese and other birds aren't reading these signs, and they aren't asking for a habitat without crabgrass. All of the UMass students I know could not care less about the presence of crabgrass on their campus. But there are those who believe that lush, green lawns are essential, even at the potential risk of students and our campus wildlife.
According to landscape services, there have yet to be any instances of "duck mortality," but why be cautious? No one really thought that tobacco was all that harmful when it was first introduced or that radioactive materials were worth avoiding. Why should we think twice about spraying nature with a coat of chemicals, if we haven't yet come across a double-beaked duck or three-eyed fish? If I've learned anything from Biology of Social Issues, it's that applying something classified as one of the "least dangerous" of the common pesticides is far from the safety of "not at all dangerous." And I just really don't see the point. Which is more important to you: a crabgrass-free UMass or healthy ducks … and students? Luckily, this decision is completely up to people other than us - the students - unless we decide to get involved.
Lauren Rockoff is a Collegian columnist. She can be reached at lrockoff@student.umass.edu.
According to landscape services, there have yet to be any instances of "duck mortality," but why be cautious? No one really thought that tobacco was all that harmful when it was first introduced or that radioactive materials were worth avoiding. Why should we think twice about spraying nature with a coat of chemicals, if we haven't yet come across a double-beaked duck or three-eyed fish? If I've learned anything from Biology of Social Issues, it's that applying something classified as one of the "least dangerous" of the common pesticides is far from the safety of "not at all dangerous." And I just really don't see the point. Which is more important to you: a crabgrass-free UMass or healthy ducks … and students? Luckily, this decision is completely up to people other than us - the students - unless we decide to get involved.
Lauren Rockoff is a Collegian columnist. She can be reached at lrockoff@student.umass.edu.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Angela Stasiowski
posted 5/12/08 @ 11:38 PM EST
honestly one of your best.
of course its hard to choose just one!
Ed Cutting
posted 5/13/08 @ 10:31 AM EST
> That brown sticky stuff, by the way, is actually a
> product known as Ice Ban Magic or Ice B'Gone. It
> is made from a mixture of magnesium chloride and
> a brewery by-product. (Continued…)
Post a Comment