Benjamin Franklin wrote in Poor Richard’s Almanac in 1746 that we don’t know the worth of water until the well has run dry – wise words spoken by a man who knew nothing of the ill-effects the approaching Industrial Revolution and waste dumping on freshwater resources. Although Franklin’s “water” was metaphorical – meaning he was implying any kind of resource that could be exhausted – its literal interpretation can be understood and applied today. As residents of the greater Toledo area can attest to, our efforts to preserve our “well” have failed; although our well is not dry, the water is a “pea soup color.” For those who have not read or seen the stories coming from the coastline of Lake Erie: On Saturday, August 2, the city of Toledo issued a municipal ban on city water after tests at a water treatment plant showed levels of Microcystin above the standard for human consumption. Microcystin is a toxin released during Cyanobacterial (blue-green algae) blooms and can cause liver damage, vomiting, and rashes if ingested. In the case of Toledo, Lake Erie has experienced record algae blooms in the last four years – the worst of which occurred in 2011. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration released a satellite image of the lake, which showed a small, concentrated algae bloom centered right where Toledo draws its water supply. Researchers and scientists attribute the increase in algae blooms to the enormous amount of phosphorous-rich fertilizers that wash into the lake from farms, as well as sewage treatment plant wastes. So, how does this event affect our lives? What relevance does it have to the many inland lakes that sprawl across the Great Lakes State? The answer is simple, really: the same phosphorous-rich fertilizers that farmers use to grow crops are used to make our lawns green. We consistently allow ourselves to dump chemicals into the water that our children play in, pets swim in, and fish live in. Those same algae blooms that are occurring in Lake Erie are occurring in every lake in the state of Michigan. The chain of events we set in motion every time we dump a bag of chemical fertilizer is never-ending. Our lakes have an illness, and rather than addressing the symptoms and finding a cure, we have contributed to the cause. It is time for a change. It is time to take back control of the most-coveted resource on Earth – the one our state is so fortunate to have a plentiful supply of. Carl Sagan once said “Anything else youre interested in is not going to happen if you cant breathe the air and drink the water. Dont sit this one out. Do something. You are, by accident of fate, alive at an absolutely critical moment in the history of our planet.” So, we urge you not to sit this one out. We urge you to consider the implications of using chemical fertilizers, and know that there are alternatives available. But most of all, we urge you to understand the worth of water before the well runs dry; the warning signs are here – as they were for the Great Lakes. The time for change is now. Blake Terrill Crop Services International & Flowerfield Enterprises
Posted on: Tue, 12 Aug 2014 13:25:59 +0000
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