Chesapake Bay Article Found on Yahoo News
- Thread starter Mark D
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It's a national treasure, and we're at a major crossroads in the bay," Swanson said. "Do we want to preserve it, or do we choose to let it go?"
Same with the dead zone at the mouth of the Mississippi. Who wants to start with banning "Weed and Feed" for everyone's lawns?
And then tell the farmer he has to cut back 80-90% on the fertilizer?
Necessary, but probably won't happen.
Buzz
Same with the dead zone at the mouth of the Mississippi. Who wants to start with banning "Weed and Feed" for everyone's lawns?
And then tell the farmer he has to cut back 80-90% on the fertilizer?
Necessary, but probably won't happen.
Buzz
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We grow oysters for the foundation, have 4 cages on the pier now. It makes us feel better that we are trying to help, however there seems to always be builders and developers flushing more stuff into the water. There is a 'run-off' tax being looked at now, and that will cause more problems , I'm sure!
From a nutrient management standpoint, treated waste water from sewage treatment plants is a MAJOR source of nutrients in all coastal waters, including the bay. I don't remember where I read it but the story goes like this; the Blatimore, Washington, Richmond metro areas and ajoining suburbs put more nutrients into the bay than all sources in the watershed combined! Even if this isn't totally accrate, it still should be a wakeup call. We need to deal with nutrients from the largest source, people. I don't claim to have the answer to this problem, but clearly work needs to be done by the powers that be to find ways to reduce this. The farmer is not the sole source of nutrients and cannot be expected to shoulder the entire burden. I agree with Surfer, lets stop putting fertilizer and weed killer on non food/economic targets. I know many farmers, and most will only use fertilizer if needed, and then only the minimun needed because its expensive. How many homeowners overapply fertilizer to keep the lawn green?
My brother in law runs a lawn service and has a customer who has him fertilize her yard several time a season. Ironically, she also complains about the frequent need for mowing during the summer. He told her if they had not put on all the fertilizer it would grow more slowly. Her reply was yes but its so nice and green this way??
My brother in law runs a lawn service and has a customer who has him fertilize her yard several time a season. Ironically, she also complains about the frequent need for mowing during the summer. He told her if they had not put on all the fertilizer it would grow more slowly. Her reply was yes but its so nice and green this way??