To the Journal editor:

A disturbing trend has cropped up in our neighborhood: the spraying of pesticides/insecticides and other chemicals on lawns.

Lawn care companies are promoting the use of these chemicals for “insect control,” “weed control,” “lush, green lawns.”

But, these chemicals are not without risk. Glyphosate; 2,4-D; neurotoxic insecticides, other herbicides, etc., all have risks and side effects. (Glyphosate is classified as probably carcinogenic by the International Agency for Research on Cancer.) These chemicals have been associated with increased rates of cancer and other diseases in humans and in other animals such as dogs/cats.

I have personally seen dead robins lying on lawns that had been recently sprayed.

After these chemicals are sprayed on lawns, they can easily end up flushed into Lake Superior and our groundwater, ultimately ending up in our drinking water.

We lived in Saginaw for a few years and noticed that our neighbors routinely sprayed their lawns year after year. What surprised us was the relative lack of songbirds, squirrels and bees in the neighborhood. And, our lawn looked just as good as the sprayed ones.

Around here the sprayed lawns do not look any better, in our opinion. In fact, our lawn looks great with the yearly addition of some compost/top soil and a safe fertilizer without weedkillers. We have lots of bees and birds as well.

Spraying lawns in the spring/early summer kills dandelions/clover/violets, thus eliminating early sources of food for bees. Neurotoxic pesticides kill bees and other beneficial insects. Without bees, about one-third of our food supply will no longer exist.

We live in the Upper Peninsula where it is not natural to have lush lawns, or monocultures–which are rarely found in nature. Bees need a source of food in the spring.

Our children, as all animals –whether tame or wild — need a safe place to live, play, and walk. We need a non-toxic environment with clean water to drink.

Please think carefully about whether it is worth the risk of using these lawn chemicals. The city of Marquette should also rethink the use of these chemicals in our parks and other green spaces where children and dogs routinely come into contact with them.

Sincerely,