When my family moved to a condominium, we thought: Less work, no problems!  True, but we discovered  that our freshly mowed lawn was receiving a dose of pesticides.

We called the landscaper asking to discontinue pesticides to our section, as my husband had cancer, and our Lab had two amputations due to cancer.  Am I next?  The town is infested with those ambiguous signs telling us not to walk on the grass for a couple of days. What happens on the third or fourth day?

I called the number on the sign to ascertain what is being applied. I was told essentially “poison.” My heart sank thinking about kids who play on the grass. The sign is a mere indication that the poison is wet and takes a few days to dry.

I read, and heard on the radio that Portland (and South Portland)  had taken a precautionary approach to use of pesticides, commercially and privately. I called  the sustainability coordinator at Portland City Hall and met with him to learn how to work with Yarmouth Town Hall to legally create an ordinance similar to Portland which has the strongest ordinance in the country.

Dear readers, think of your families. We are fortunate to live on the shores of beautiful Maine, but let’s consider safeguarding and protecting the health and welfare of ourselves and our environment. The results of exposure may not occur this year or next, but they are cumulative and take their toll in later years … on all of us.

Pat Clements

Yarmouth

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