CALLING FOR A "HOLY WAR" AGAINST LAWNS
When you really think of it, lawns certainly end among some of the most foolish and ridiculous creations of the human mind...
The concept of lawns arose from the fact that the dominant power from roughly 1750 to 1950 was Great-Britain. There, it rains all the time, and there, the green grassy areas that gave birth to the idea of "lawn" are more or less natutal occurences. The idle rich landowners of the landed gentry were intent to show off their wealth, and huge green areas put to no particular use were a way to do just that. They were in turn copied by increasingly less wealthy people, as lawns became a sign of status, slowly trickling down the social scales.
The rest is history. People like and tend to reproduce the familiar. As Englishmen of Imperial Britain tried to recreate a semblance of their native environment and customs wherever they went, the lawn as an universal "must" was unfortunately born. Even in semi-desert or desert climates such as say Australia or the American "South-West" (read, Southern California), where lawns and these super-lawns known as "golf courses" are nothing short of monstrosities...
In fact, believe it or not, the amount of space, time, energy, water and other resources yearly invested in lawns are absolutely staggering, making them the number one "agricultural" endeavor in the United States.
SOME LAWNMOVER STATISTICS:
EPA Statistics: Gas Mowers represent 5% of U.S. Air Pollution
---------------------------------------------------------------
FACT 1: Just one hour of mowing is the equivalent of driving 350 miles in terms of volatile organic compounds.
Fact 2: One average gas mower spews 87 lbs. of the greenhouse gas CO2, and 54 lbs. of other pollutants into the air. Every year.
Fact 3: Over 17 million gallons of gas are spilled each year refueling lawn and garden equipment – more oil than was spilled by the infamous Exxon Valdez.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Each weekend, about 54 million Americans mow their lawns, using 800 MILLION gallons of gas per year. And producing millions of tons of air pollutants in the process. Garden equipment engines, which have had unregulated emissions until very recently, emit the highest levels of carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides, producing up to 5% of the nation's air pollution. And a good deal more in metropolitan areas.
According to the U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), one traditional gas powered lawn mower produces as much air pollution as forty-three new cars each being driven 12,000 miles. That's *1* lawnmover and *43* CARS and 12,000 MILES. 1 lawnmover, 43 cars... Think of it!
Speaking of gas, the EPA states that 17 million gallons of fuel, mostly gasoline, are spilled each year while refueling lawn equipment. That's more than all the oil spilled by the Exxon Valdez, in the Gulf of Alaska. In addition to groundwater contamination, spilled fuel that evaporates into the air and volatile organic compounds spit out by small engines make smog-forming ozone when cooked by heat and sunlight.
Until 1995, lawnmower emissions were unregulated. Older more powerful, less efficient two-cycle engines release 25-30% of their oil and gas unburned into the air. Gas mowers emit hydrocarbons (a principle ingredient of smog), particulate matter (damaging to your respiratory system, and even worse for children), carbon monoxide (a poisonous gas) and carbon dioxide (contributing to global warming). The health toll includes cancer as well as damage to lungs, heart, and both the immune and detoxification systems. In addition, smog inhibits plant growth. EPA regulations are beginning to reduce mower emissions, but there is still a very long way to go...
And all this were just lawnmover statistics. [If you want to know more about this, just go here: http://www.peoplepoweredmachines.com/faq-environment.htm ]
And of course, it does not stop there. Far from it!
The concept of lawns arose from the fact that the dominant power from roughly 1750 to 1950 was Great-Britain. There, it rains all the time, and there, the green grassy areas that gave birth to the idea of "lawn" are more or less natutal occurences. The idle rich landowners of the landed gentry were intent to show off their wealth, and huge green areas put to no particular use were a way to do just that. They were in turn copied by increasingly less wealthy people, as lawns became a sign of status, slowly trickling down the social scales.
The rest is history. People like and tend to reproduce the familiar. As Englishmen of Imperial Britain tried to recreate a semblance of their native environment and customs wherever they went, the lawn as an universal "must" was unfortunately born. Even in semi-desert or desert climates such as say Australia or the American "South-West" (read, Southern California), where lawns and these super-lawns known as "golf courses" are nothing short of monstrosities...
In fact, believe it or not, the amount of space, time, energy, water and other resources yearly invested in lawns are absolutely staggering, making them the number one "agricultural" endeavor in the United States.
SOME LAWNMOVER STATISTICS:
EPA Statistics: Gas Mowers represent 5% of U.S. Air Pollution
---------------------------------------------------------------
FACT 1: Just one hour of mowing is the equivalent of driving 350 miles in terms of volatile organic compounds.
Fact 2: One average gas mower spews 87 lbs. of the greenhouse gas CO2, and 54 lbs. of other pollutants into the air. Every year.
Fact 3: Over 17 million gallons of gas are spilled each year refueling lawn and garden equipment – more oil than was spilled by the infamous Exxon Valdez.
----------------------------------------------------------------
Each weekend, about 54 million Americans mow their lawns, using 800 MILLION gallons of gas per year. And producing millions of tons of air pollutants in the process. Garden equipment engines, which have had unregulated emissions until very recently, emit the highest levels of carbon monoxide, volatile organic compounds and nitrogen oxides, producing up to 5% of the nation's air pollution. And a good deal more in metropolitan areas.
According to the U.S. EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), one traditional gas powered lawn mower produces as much air pollution as forty-three new cars each being driven 12,000 miles. That's *1* lawnmover and *43* CARS and 12,000 MILES. 1 lawnmover, 43 cars... Think of it!
Speaking of gas, the EPA states that 17 million gallons of fuel, mostly gasoline, are spilled each year while refueling lawn equipment. That's more than all the oil spilled by the Exxon Valdez, in the Gulf of Alaska. In addition to groundwater contamination, spilled fuel that evaporates into the air and volatile organic compounds spit out by small engines make smog-forming ozone when cooked by heat and sunlight.
Until 1995, lawnmower emissions were unregulated. Older more powerful, less efficient two-cycle engines release 25-30% of their oil and gas unburned into the air. Gas mowers emit hydrocarbons (a principle ingredient of smog), particulate matter (damaging to your respiratory system, and even worse for children), carbon monoxide (a poisonous gas) and carbon dioxide (contributing to global warming). The health toll includes cancer as well as damage to lungs, heart, and both the immune and detoxification systems. In addition, smog inhibits plant growth. EPA regulations are beginning to reduce mower emissions, but there is still a very long way to go...
And all this were just lawnmover statistics. [If you want to know more about this, just go here: http://www.peoplepoweredmachines.com/faq-environment.htm ]
And of course, it does not stop there. Far from it!
In fact, just here in the USA, there is something like 30 to 40 MILLION acres [12 to 16 Million Hectares, for readers elsewhere] of lawns. Making them the most-planted U.S. "crop" ever.
Lawns also use, in average, 10 times MORE toxic chemicals than the most intensively chemical-based conventional agriculture.
Actually, being in the "lawn care" business is one of the most dangerous occupation there is, perhaps more dangerous than being in the military in time of colonial wars. In fact, according to the US government, you have significantly more chances to be injured on the job working as a lawn maintenance worker than working as a police officer.
To begin with, if dealing with lawns is your job, cancer is not a possibility, but almost a certitude. And the host of lawn-"care"-related chronic and acute diseases almost reads like a list of everything bad you can develop.
This is to say nothing yet about the fact that, in 2001, lawns COST about $37.7 BILLION a year to maintain. A little of that money was actually used on non-lawn "garden"-related purchases, but with the runaway inflation since 2001, one can evaluate that the cost of "lawns and gardens" for 2008 will probably be in the vicinity of $50 BILLION, with the purely "lawn" part of that money over $45 BILLION.
Lawns also use, in average, 10 times MORE toxic chemicals than the most intensively chemical-based conventional agriculture.
Actually, being in the "lawn care" business is one of the most dangerous occupation there is, perhaps more dangerous than being in the military in time of colonial wars. In fact, according to the US government, you have significantly more chances to be injured on the job working as a lawn maintenance worker than working as a police officer.
To begin with, if dealing with lawns is your job, cancer is not a possibility, but almost a certitude. And the host of lawn-"care"-related chronic and acute diseases almost reads like a list of everything bad you can develop.
This is to say nothing yet about the fact that, in 2001, lawns COST about $37.7 BILLION a year to maintain. A little of that money was actually used on non-lawn "garden"-related purchases, but with the runaway inflation since 2001, one can evaluate that the cost of "lawns and gardens" for 2008 will probably be in the vicinity of $50 BILLION, with the purely "lawn" part of that money over $45 BILLION.
That's over the yearly budget of many countries, and one could have a nice medium-priced war for that amount of money. If this same amount was invested four years in a row into the creation of solar power or wind power systems in suitable locations, say Nevada for solar and North Dakota for wind, it would be enough cash to actually create the infrastructure to generate the entire electricity used in the USA in a whole year, renevably and free to the consumer, for as long as the system will be maintained. Just imagine... a world with no lawns, but free electricity to all households! And from the fifth year on, of course, that same money could be used to... well, you name it. That gives you an idea of the actual money hole that lawns represent!
This, of course, is all a little bit theoretical... So, the very same thing could be said in a different way: Assuming you are a homeowner and have a lawn, if you stopped "caring" for your useless lawn, and invested wisely all the money so saved, for retirement or a college education for your children, you could create quite a sizeable nest egg that way. To say nothing about the enormous amounts of time also so saved, in addition.
In short, lawns are definitely things of the past. They need to go the way of the horse and buggy, of DDT and Agent Orange, and of the 8 or 10 miles a gallon gas-guzzler. It's time for us all to grow up! Lawns are definitely OUT.
Eliminating lawns should of course first and foremost be done by educating the public at large, and experience proves that many people are quite receptive when exposed to the facts. But it could also be done by more "persuasive" approaches, that is, by a positive use of the often highly abused coercive power of the State, what we usually call "government".
Since "the power to tax is the power to kill", lawns as contemptuous wastes of space and resources are prime candidates for taxation, and, in fact, should be taxed. And taxed heavily. By the square foot.
To the contrary, every amount of land dedicated to organic food production, and particularly, to personal and family gardens, should to the very minimum be taken off tax roles completely. Not be taxed at all, or even better, perhaps subventioned from the proceeds of redistributed lawn taxes.
Such an approach to the lawn problem would create a powerful incentive toward the disparition of lawn waste, as well as encourage the advent of personal organic food production, with quite predictible yet truly momentous consequences for public health and the common well-being.
However, you don't have to wait for such measures to start taking action yourself now!
DO IT YOURSELF & DO IT NOW: First, of course, start with your own lawn. And spread the word. What's most remarkable with community approaches is that any municipality or county can create and implement laws and regulations to this effect. There is no need to wait for State or federal laws that might never come, considering in whose pay the average professional politician is.
Educating oneself and one's family, friends and neighbors about lawns does not take much effort. It's impossible for anyone who thinks rationally to read the three first posts in the present blog, and not be convinced that there is indeed sort of a "small problem" at hand when it comes to lawns... Taking action about it yourself and sharing the information are both easy steps to take -- as it will only save you and your friends and family lots of time and money, and that, right away.
Even more formal and "persuasive" community action is also something that can be done locally, completely at the proverbial grass-roots level. All it takes is the will to do it, and get to the very roots of that grass.
It's something simple and easy to do, and you can decide to start doing it right away! Don't be surprised if suddenly you can envision yourself, a few months from now, looking back to this very moment as you are enjoying the products of your brand new organic and sustainable garden, a garden that flourishes where that useless time & money lawn thief once was, as you start congratulating yourself for having taken the decision to get rid of that lawn and replace it by something useful, beautiful and healthy right away. You will see how glad you are for having taken the right decision right now! It was probably one of the best decisions you ever made! It's like quitting smoking and truly have lost the habit... No one who ever got off lawns ever regretted to have replaced these unhealthy money and time sinks by an Organic and Sustainable Garden!
And wait until you read the crushing statistics coming in the next post! Once you get to real statistics, lawns really read like a horror story!
Copyright OSL 2008 - All rights reserved. Standard non-commercial license to reproduce freely. Permalink of the present post: http://optimalgardens.blogspot.com/2008/09/calling-for-holy-war-against-lawns.html
Posts
