Sunday, June 06, 2010

Pesky Pesticides

If you live in California, perhaps you saw the recent headline which read "State Poised to OK supertoxic pesticide"? You can read all about it here, but the basic gist of it is that the state of California has this crazy idea that it might be ok to allow the use of methyl iodide in our soil.

Among other things, methyl iodide is such a reliable cause of cancer that it's used in labs to induce cancer. Breathing methyl iodide fumes can cause lung, liver, kidney and central nervous system damage. It causes nausea, dizziness, coughing and vomiting. Prolonged contact with skin causes burns. Massive inhalation causes pulmonary edema. But astonishingly, those that govern our fine state think it's just a swell idea to dump this crap into our soil. I wonder how much money the pesticide lobbyists paid for this? I am outraged, but then, it's not terribly surprising considering that we live in a world where corporations regularly get away with destroying our environment, right, BP?

Although I have very little hope that it will make a difference, Governor Schwarzenegger is taking comments regarding the use of this poison until the end of this month. I made the call and I hope you will too, and I hope you'll also pass it on. You can reach the Gov. at 916-445-2841. You can also sign a petition to be submitted to the EPA here, and keep updated by visiting the Pesticide Action Network.

Meanwhile, our little garden here is plugging away, with lots of squash blossoms and tomatoes peaking out from tiny flowers, and the kale is growing like weeds. The basil seems to be getting devoured by slugs, but I'm not feeling a need to poison the soil with cancer causing chemicals! I was thinking I'd start with treating the little slimy creatures to a cup of beer or a sprinkling of salt. Cause beer and salt aren't only good in the kitchen!

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