Two Arguments on Pesticides

Some environmentalists say: Certain herbicides and pesticides used to kill weeds and bugs on lawns are potentially hazardous to humans as well as to pets.

Heavy exposure during agricultural use has been linked to neurological and reproductive problems in humans, to liver and kidney disease and sometimes to cancer.

Of 232 ingredients registered for use on lawns, about 60 have the potential to cause serious bodily harm, depending on length of exposure and concentration.

The industry says:

Lawn-spraying companies use treatments that are mostly water and fertilizer, with tiny percentages of the safest herbicides and pesticides as specified by the customer.

Lawn chemicals are so diluted that they are not hazardous if properly applied. As they dry, the substances bond to plant life and leave no dangerous residue.

Although the risk to humans has not been fully studied, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sees no health emergency in lawn applications of herbicides and pesticides.

Spread-it-yourself products can cause problems because many home owners don’t understand the contents, use too much or do not take precautions.