As previously mentioned, Lake Group has enrolled in the Adopt-a-Highway program organized by CalTrans, and for the past several months has been keeping several miles of Highway 29 north of Lakeport litter-free. This enterprise unfortunately suffered a setback before it had properly begun: Last March, a few days before our first scheduled pickup date, we were informed that our stretch of roadside had recently been sprayed with a herbicide so potent that a full week of avoidance was recommended, so we had to cancel.

That unfortunate event acted as a catalyst. We have concluded that it's time to re-examine the county weed control policy, which at present seems to be to spray everything by default unless the landowner raises specific objections. During the Excom¹s annual strategy session in June we decided that stopping routine roadside herbicide sprays should be one of our primary objectives for this year: specifically, we want the Board of Supervisors to adopt a no-spray policy before the weed season begins next spring.

Although the use of herbicides and other toxic chemicals to control invasive alien plants is occasionally unavoidable, we think that applications should be minimized, since they pose ongoing risks to human health, ecological stability, and the quality of both air and water. Roadside herbicide applications also pose a special additional hazard, since native basketmakers routinely gather materials along the verges, materials which they traditionally process with their teeth!

There¹s a better way: other jurisdictions, including neighboring Mendocino and Humboldt by mowing them rather than by applying chemicals. This practice is not only much safer and in the case of noxious pests such as star thistle more effective, it may also be more economical, considering the skyrocketing costs of petroleum-derived weedkillers.

The Lake Group hopes that a proposal to stop spraying herbicides along Lake County¹s roadsides will appear on the agenda of the Board of Supervisors some time this fall. In the meantime, if you agree that it¹s time to put an end to the practice please take a moment to sign the petition to the BOS that has been posted to this site. Hard copies will also be available at the Lake Group meeting on September 13 and our booth at the Old Time Bluegrass Festival on September 22 and 23, as well as Watershed Books on Main Street in Lakeport.

For more information, call Victoria at 994 1931 or send an email to vbrandon@lakelive.org