The farmer-veterans in “Ground Operations” have chosen to grow organically (whether certified or not) they resist using the chemical approach to farming for several reasons. Many have been exposed to chemicals in the war that have left them with damaging health effects, some just don’t want to support the use of fossil-fuel based inputs that require us to go to war to get them.
But what do you do when your neighbors are using them? And not just a spray can, but airplanes laying down blankets of mist over acres or miles of crops?
Ask Laura Krouse, an organic grower in Iowa, the ground zero of pesticide use. Why, you get yourself an air monitor from the Pesticide Action Network and become a “citizen scientist.” Iowa has now joined Minnesota, Hawaii and California (and soon, Illinois & Wisconsin) to start monitoring the pesticide drift with a handy little gizmo like a mini-vacuum cleaner. Measurements are taken over intervals for several days after an application, onto little sponges that are frozen and sent back to the lab.
Want to become a Citizen Scientist to quell your fears or because you need some actual proof?
Read on from Grist.org: http://grist.org/food/drift-catchers-use-citizen-science-to-fight-pesticide-pollution/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_term=Weekly%2520Oct%252022&utm_campaign=weekly