Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Pruning Party Update: What Citizens Want

Another pruning party was held in Wellfleet today, under the leadership of Paul Sieloff, Town Administrator, and the guidance of local organic gardener Laura Kelley. This second expedition along the power lines adjacent to Duck Pond was symbolic, of course. The headline could be “Wellfleet Pruners Demonstrate Vegetation Removal Without Herbicides To Be Option.” And, there were almost as many photographers and reporters present as hearty souls wielding pruning shears or lopers. Still, progress was made and soon neat little piles of baby pines had accumulated along the sand path.

(For those of you who are new to this blog, our utility company is required to maintain vegetation under power lines by Federal law, but Federal law does not mandate the use of herbicides. The utility company will remain nameless because they pay someone to follow blogs and newspapers, and will read these words if I mention their name.)

Today’s goal was to remove
as many root systems as possible. It was hard work, no doubt about it. Can you find Sven, dressed in a Wellfleet T-shirt, in this photo? He had sweat pouring off his brow. A man named Carl said he hoped to start a similar group in Orleans.

I was glad to see two newcomers, Melody Thibodeau, and Dick Morrill, both present at the Monday screening of “A Chemical Reaction.”

“The movie showed the power of the chemical companies,” Dick said. “They are really just interested in money. They don’t care about us.”

More history: Several thousand Cape Codders signed a petition last year against herbicidal spraying.
Officials from 13 towns signed on and legislators followed up with a letter. Congressman Delahunt wrote the EPA, but none of this seems to matter. What citizens want does not matter. Hundreds of letters were sent to the DAR Commissioner, with scientific facts to explain why spraying five herbicides is a bad idea. (The Cape Cod Commission did obtain a one-year moratorium so that private wells could be adequately mapped, but it ends 1/1/11.)

Eric Williams, reporter for the Cape Cod Times, came to the event and summarizes it on his popular video show, Cape Cast:

If the utility company does spray up to five herbicides, traces will filter down through our sandy soil into the sole-source aquifer. On the Outer Cape, most of us have private wells. Corporate “deciders” live elsewhere and do not drink Cape Cod water. Like the chemical companies mentioned by Dick above, the utility folks do not care about us. Herbicides present a cheaper solution. What citizens want does not matter.

Today I learned that federal funds are being used in California against anti-pesticide non-profits like the Environmental Working Group, which created a handy “Shoppers Guide to Pesticides in Produce,” news that I find shocking. Where is Michelle Obama when we need her? (Remember the video of Ms. Obama planting an organic garden at the White House? Have you seen any new clips showing the harvest? Are food bloggers reporting on a White House chef, concocting an organic feast? If not, why not?)

I’m grateful that here in Wellfleet our Town Administrator Paul Sieloff is a leader who dares to take a stand on behalf of citizens. Such action is becoming more and more rare in this new century where the Supreme Court has ruled corporations have the same rights as people … What do you think of the Supreme Court decision? Will it impact your life? Do you think environmental groups should resort to civil disobedience? Would you like to join the next pruning party? What more can Cape Codders do to ensure their drinking water is not polluted with toxic chemicals?

Comments (20)

Loading... Logging you in...
  • Logged in as
Kudos to everyone who attended this party. You are my heros. Wish I could have been there too!
My recent post Big Island on a Budget
Frugal Kiwi's avatar

Frugal Kiwi · 744 weeks ago

A community group getting together to show why pesticides are unnecessary is a great idea. Wish I could have been there to help.
My recent post Emergency Survival Kit List
This is such a great community activity, specific to your values and location. I'd be curious just how effective the chemical solution is ... I'd guess NOT very much, which means they'd need to use a LOT to get the results they need.

This makes so much more sense to me. Congrats on your event.
My recent post Day 4- Never Shock a Puppy
Awesome community effort. It's interesting to read about power-line doings in another part of the country. Our electric company here in Michigan, Consumers Energy, isn't using herbicides that I know of, but they're mowing down huge pathways through forests and yards, which isn't making people too happy at the moment.

I understand having to remove limbs and trees, but some of these cuttings are resulting in major throughways, taking down beautiful trees nowhere near the lines. There must be a happy medium in there somewhere.
My recent post Seven Things I Learned During the ‘Community’ Set Visit
What a great idea this party is. And you're right, I've kind of wondered what happened to that organic White House garden.I think the White House chef was on Top Chef this season and made some reference to it - oh, no, I remember, the contestants had to cook with ingredients that were actually picked from the garden! So it did produce veggies and they were used for that at least.
2 replies · active 744 weeks ago
Yes, at least. But you did not see Ms. Obama harvesting herself. Next year she will be obliged to plant GMO seeds. Just wait and see. But, thanks, Marthaandme, for this detail.
I hate to burst your bubble, but the veggies picked from the garden weren't the ones that actually went into the dishes prepared in the competition. No doubt they were eaten by SOMEONE, but Mario Batali didn't really cook with White House carrots. The magic of TV!
My recent post GUEST POST- Duck Hunting- The Born Again
Sandy, I'm grateful for this accounting of the pruning party, since I miss attending them, it lets me know how it went. You mention that you would not write the name of the company, because they pay someone to search. Why not have them read this? Is it not significant that they out of all people should know what kind of response arises from their customers, the paying community?
2 replies · active 744 weeks ago
I know that the utility company follows from my stat counter, which provides enough information for me to identify them. They will surely read about the pruning party in the newspaper. I do not think they care about our response, or they would have already changed their policy. I realize a blog is public and they are free to read what I write if they care to. However, I have decided not to mention the name, not to lead them to the blog through this service they have to trace what people think of them. I write to inform the people of Wellfleet, and those who live elsewhere but care a lot about our special town. It is a personal choice. Others might choose to do otherwise.
I wrote a long reply to this question earlier, Bev, but for some reason it disappeared into cyberspace. The utility company follows any mention of its name. I know because of my stat counter. I realize a blog is public, but I do not fancy being read by the utility company in question. I think they already know how Cape Codders feel and do not give a damn. This is unfortunate. Perhaps, as Sandra suggests below, they would listen more to the business community.
I didn't know that about the Environmental Working Group! (I've worked with them before when I wrote an article about environmental contaminants). Do you have more details on that?
And, as someone who lives part time on Cape Cod, I really do wish I'd been at this meeting. Thanks for posting about it.
My recent post End-of-summer sewing
1 reply · active less than 1 minute ago
Here is the press release from yesterday, Christine: http://www.ewg.org/release/pesticide-industry-to-...
MyKidsEatSquid's avatar

MyKidsEatSquid · 744 weeks ago

What a great community event. I wonder if there's something like that going on in my area?
If mountain bikers ride those power line trails, you could possibly round up a lot of young volunteers. Here, the bikers work together to maintain trails.
This is an amazing use of the force of a community. I would have loved to attend; maybe next time!
My recent post Surprising Places Germs Hide Out
Sandra Larsen's avatar

Sandra Larsen · 744 weeks ago

Sadly, Consumer Energy in Michigan (sorry Jane B.!) DOES use herbicides in their ROWs. In fact, Consumer Energy is a member of the Council of Great Lakes Industries whose current members include DOW AGROWSCIENCES, DOW CHEMICAL and DUPONT. (just guess who manufactures the herbicides!) Consumer Energy, like our utility company, uses the bottomless pockets of big chemical companies to finance the outdated, biased junk "science" which persuades states/agencies to sign off on practices like putting toxins on our land and in our water. They don't get bogged down by silly little details, like FACTS!
Sandra Larsen's avatar

Sandra Larsen · 744 weeks ago

The only way to convince these companies to halt the practice of using toxins is to convince them that their bottom line $$$ will suffer. I am convinced, after being at this for years and by seeing results that others have obtained, that if we affect their "brand", as they are publicly traded, we will get their attention. Basically we need to make enough appropriate noise; get noticed in the business circles which will eventually be heard by the CEO of the company.
Sandra Larsen's avatar

Sandra Larsen · 744 weeks ago

. Along with members of the coalition: Cape Cod for a Truly Green N’ ,I sat with upper management of N' recently in Boston and can assure you that all they care about is profit and they can pay to have national experts assert that their practices are best for the environment. (!) However, once it is public knowledge that these "experts" who develop the "best management practices: have clear financial connections to the chemical companies, maybe we will have the edge.
Many of you who have posted a comment lament that you couldn't participate in the pruning because you are not here, but there is much you can do to make noise, either in your community or here. You can find out how, including how to have a business or organization sign on to our efforts and so much more. A whole coalition of groups and individuals have joined together to make this happen. Type: Cape Cod For a Truly Green NStar into your search engine and see how you can make some of that noise.
1 reply · active 744 weeks ago
Thanks, Sandra, for these comments. Glad to see you feel passionately about this issue, as do I. It sounds like a great idea to have businesses sign up this way. I plan to print out your form and get local businesses to sign on.
It's great to see a community banding together behind a common cause! I'll actually be in your neck of the woods over the weekend. A friend of mine wants to take a little road trip and have brunch in Provincetown for her birthday, so I'm looking forward to getting away from the city, even if it's just a few hours!

Post a new comment

Comments by