Kudos to Scott Eldredge and John Bochert of Eldredge Lumber & Hardware for their June 23 Maine Voices column (“Protecting waterways both moral imperative and good business”).

Friends of Casco Bay has long delivered the ecological lawn care message to homeowners associations, garden clubs, neighborhood socials, church groups and grass-roots community organizations.

Businesspeople who speak out for chem-free lawns raise the bar, taking this issue to a higher level. They are putting their profits on the line to protect the environment.

There are many compelling reasons to reduce our use of pesticides and lawn fertilizers.

Pesticides are toxic by design. Pesticides threaten the health of children, pets and wildlife when they are applied to the landscape. These chemicals harm aquatic life when washed into the bay by stormwater.

Many people are unaware that by fertilizing our lawns, we are changing the chemistry of Casco Bay. When it rains, nitrogen-laden fertilizers are swept into Maine’s nearshore waters.

This pollution triggers algae blooms that release carbon dioxide when they die and decay. In seawater, carbon dioxide forms an acid. The acidification of our coastal waters threatens our shellfish resources, like clams and oysters, and our local economy.

We are seeing growing support for chem-free lawns across the yard care industry, including landscaping professionals in the Maine Landscape & Nursery Association and the Maine Arborist Association.

As more municipalities consider limiting or banning the use of lawn chemicals – pesticides and fertilizers – lawn care professionals like Scott Eldredge and John Bochert can help them find a way to reassure residents that you can have a green yard and a blue bay!

Cathy L. Ramsdell, CPA

executive director and Casco Baykeeper pro tem, Friends of Casco Bay

South Portland

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