The Adverse Effects of Green Lawns — страница 2

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low in oxygen that it is referred to as a "Dead Zone". All fish and shrimp have abandoned this zone. Marine animals, which are not able to flee, such as ground feeders and worms, have died. This dead zone is in the center of one of the most important commercial and recreational fisheries in the United States (Flux and Sources of Nutrients in the Mississippi – Atchafalaya River Basin, 4). As water is becoming a major issue of the new century, we continue using water to irrigate our lawns. The average lawn requires about 10,000 gallons of water over the course of a summer to keep it green. This water is often diverted from other uses, such as agriculture. By the year 2005, at least 40% of the world’s population might face serious problems with agriculture, industry or

human health, if they rely only on natural freshwater. Severe water shortages could strike even water-rich countries such as the United States (Scientific American, 42-43). Greenhouse gasses are produced both by the decomposition of grass clippings, and by the use of lawnmowers. Clippings disposed of in sealed plastic bags are broken down into methane. Methane traps over 21 times more heat per molecule than carbon dioxide. Most lawn mowers use two-stroke gasoline engines, which are very inefficient at creating power from hydrocarbon fuels, and are highly polluting (United States Environmental Protection Agency, 2001). Thirty million acres, totalling roughly 468,750 square miles, are devoted to American lawns (Jenkins Scott. The Lawn: A History of American Obsession). Individual

homeowners cannot ignore the rights of their neighbors to maintain the value of their homes, but as a nation we cannot ignore the hidden costs of this use of resources. Perhaps the solution to this conundrum is to develop a new national consensus on what constitutes a truly beautiful lawn. Works Cited Daniels, Stivie. The Green Lawn Handbook. Macmillan: New York, 1995 Geleick, Peter. “Making Every Drop Count.” Scientific American Feb. 2001: 42-43 Jenkins, Scott. The Lawn: A History of American Obsession: Washington, DC: 1994 Lawn and Gardens. (2001): 9 pars. 23 Feb 2002 <http://www.homestore.com> United States Department of Commerce. NOAA Coastal Ocean Program. Flux and Sources of Nutrients in the Mississippi – Atchafalaya River Basin. Series 17, Washington: GPO,

1999. United States Environmental Protection Agency. Greenhouse Gas Emmisions from Mananagent of Selected Materials in Munipal Solid Waste. Washington: GPO, 1998 United States Senate. Committee on Environment and Public Works. The Use and Regulation of Lawn Care Chemicals. 101st Cong., 2nd sess. Washington: GPO, 1990