by Ninette Tarlton, first published on Patreon on 28 August 2024
“Three billion kilograms of pesticides are used worldwide every year [6], while only 1% of total pesticides are effectively used to control insect pests on target plants [1]. The large amounts of remaining pesticides penetrate or reach non-target plants and environmental media. As a consequence, pesticide contamination has polluted the environment and caused negative impacts on human health [1,7].” Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7908628/
For many decades, the world has been following the advice of the pesticides industry on how to deal with “pests”. Consumer choices in this area have largely been dictated by fear and/or ignorance and/or trust in suppliers of pesticides. The result? TONS of synthetic chemical formulations specifically designed to poison are released into the environment, year after year, by all sectors of society, from individuals to farmers, businesses, public institutions, governments and even schools to “deal” with every “pest” under the sun.
Insanely this broad spread anthropogenic chemical pollution is deemed the “norm”, so much so that it is even accepted to spray these poisons on or near the food we eat, in or near our freshwater resources, in and around our homes and even on or near where our children play. It should come as no surprise that traces of these chemicals are now being found everywhere and that soil life, aquatic life, ecological and even our own biological biodiversity is being destroyed.
All along, we have been looking at things wrong. The “pests” have simply been trying to tell us something. It is their advice we should follow. They were never the “problem”, just like climate change is not the problem. Big industry LOVES discussing these “problems” (they are actually symptoms) at conferences because they know that these narratives: 1. Breed fear; 2. disassociate people from the true problem so that they are unable to respond correctly and effectively.
The truth that the problem is how we humans have been doing things will set us free! This is the Best and Worst news EVER, all rolled into one. Worst: because it means we all have to finally take responsibility for our individual actions and Best: because it means we, the people of Earth, can start changing the world virtually overnight SIMPLY THROUGH THE CHOICES WE MAKE, without any help from government or industry!
Woah! An overwhelming realisation! Don’t let it be. The pests have a POWERFUL and encouraging message for you: It’s not about how little the one does, it is about how much all get done together!
Things are changing, whether you are on board or not. It’s just that we might be able to make it a little easier on ourselves if we raise our white flags in this war on nature. Nature is not the enemy, unless we continue to make her one. Being on the wrong side of nature, we will certainly lose because waging war on nature is waging war on ourselves.
I feel an extreme sense of urgency to do this work. Some would call me a pest, but I truly believe nature is running out of patience. “Pests” are there to bother us so that we will be forced to pay attention. They have important messages for us and will set us on the right path, if only we listen.
My name is Ninette and I currently run a campaign in Cape Town South Africa called “Poison-free Peninsula”. Our current primary focus is on advocating for the City of Cape Town to immediately stop its shocking practice of blanket spraying toxic synthetic herbicides on the streets and sidewalks of our communities in the iconic biodiversity hotspot, the Cape Peninsula. Concurrently we are working to inspire and support individuals, farmers, businesses, public institutions and schools in Cape Town to discontinue their reliance on toxic pesticides. Although this campaign is region specific, we encourage all individuals to join us in the hope that others receive some inspiration/guidance to do similar work elsewhere.
To join us, send an email to: poisonfreepeninsula@proton.me. You can watch our video about blanket spraying of herbicides in the Cape Peninsula here: https://youtu.be/iA2RC3bsjAE
Spring is in the Air, lets keep pesticides out of it! (19 September 2024)
Please follow the link here above to a short video suitable for sharing on whatsapp community groups and Facebook groups. Help raise awareness! This little action is dedicated to all the worker bees out there!
To read more from Ninette, please visit https://www.patreon.com/NinetteTarlton
Gaia Speaking 