Silent Spring - Rachel Carson - Part 2

Silent Spring - Rachel Carson

2017 Reading Challenge - Day 14

 January 14, 2017 

Book 3 - Silent Spring
by Rachel Carson (1962)

 Part 2 - Pages 52-102

Reading Time - 60 minutes

Every new chapters in this book hits hard and hits home. Herbicides, Pesticides, Insecticides - they all ultimately end up entering the soil. And what's in the soil? Little insects and mammals and fungi that are vital to the productivity of the soil. Carson notes that back in the 1940s, the tobacco growers in the southern US stopped using arsenic insecticides. Decades later, their tobacco is still contaminated by arsenic that is in the soil.

All of those biocides (to use her term) also damage other lifeforms - mammals, birds, fish. Cats apparently are highly susceptible to biocides because of their grooming of paws and fur.

I know that things have gotten better though. I was just looking up the European Chafer Beetle infestation that has taken hold in the Lower Mainland and Vancouver. People probably wouldn't even know that the beetles are there, except that the grubs are delicious (to other animals). Raccoons, skunks and birds happily dig up the lawn in search of these tasty morsels. In doing so, they are helping to stop the spread of the beetle. This is a good thing. But tell that to the homeowner who sees his pristine green lawn as a necessary part of life or status or something. The City of Vancouver, and many municipalities in BC, have banned insecticides for residential use (but not for commercial or industrial use). They say that the chemicals don't really have an impact on the beetles. They recommend buying nematodes and applying them to the lawn during a certain window in July when the nematodes can attach the grubs at a vulnerable time. This is good to know.

It seems, that in some ways, we have come some distance in the last 50 years. It is all a matter of perspective as well. We see something as a "weed" because it is growing somewhere where we don't want it to grow. Dandelions are fine in ditches, but not in our front yards. Even though they are a vital food for bees in the early spring. Carson gives an example from Holland of a rose garden doing poorly due to nematodes in the soil. A bit of research and they planted marigolds in with the roses. The marigold roots make a secretion that kills the nematodes. Guess what... the roses with marigolds at their feet did amazing.

It seems to me that we, as humans, are trying to fix something in nature that we see as being "broken" or "undesirable" or "different than we want it to be". In some cases, this is because we have introduced insects or plants to continents where they are not native. Without natural predators, these plants and insects become invasive.

Silent Spring - Rachel Carson
"The questions is whether any civilization can wage
relentless war on life without destroying itself,
and without losing the right to be called civilized."

Chemicals aren't going to solve the problem though. In fact, chemicals need to be applied year after year, much to the delight of the chemical manufacturers. spray machine manufacturers and companies that spray the stuff. They make tonnes of money while communities, nature, pets and people pay the price. In some situations, parasites, insects or native predators have been imported from a plant or insect's native land. They are usually chosen because they have a narrow field of operation. They like to eat the grubs of the Japanese Beetle or something similar. Using natural predators seems like a smart idea... although I do wonder what would happen if the introduced "predator" did its job too well and killed off the invader. Would it turn its eyes to some local victim?

Carson leaves us with this: "The question is whether any civilization can wage relentless war on life without destroying itself and without losing the right to be called civilized." Good question.