Two facts stood out in this article: 1) not spraying is more expensive than spraying and 2) at least some people object to the spraying. A solution comes to mind: have the village set up a special fund where those who object to the spraying can contribute toward the increased cost of not spraying. If enough money comes in, go with the "natural turf management plan." If not, keep spraying. Sounds fair, no?

At least a quarter of the homes in WFB sport those tell-tale white flags on their lawn 3-4 times a year. Not to mention the huge chunk who quietly spread weed and feed 3-4x from the hardware store.

In contrast, the parks do weed & feed once a year, making it the better place to avoid pesticide exposure. Ironic.

Those residents who want to continue to use pesticides should be doing the same thing as those in the village who do not want them.....get signatures of residents who feel The same way, provide information to support their stand and attend meetings to discuss the subject. Shouldn't residents that wanted pesticides have to come forward to say start spraying in the same fashion as those opposed rather than the board just making the decision after a few calls by people upset with the aesthetics?

It's interesting to see the vote totals .. right now 63% are OK with pesticides. Of course, this will dramatically plunge once the anti-pesticiders come to stuff the box.

I'd be interested in any compelling reason to apply pesticides, with all of their known harms, to green space used primarily by children. Aesthetics is a BS reason, in my opinion and certainly not worth all of the inherent risks associated with pesticides. Expense is another BS reason. Several years ago, after the birth of our first child, we decided to discontinue our patronage of an area lawn care company that used harmful pesticides and instead began working with Earthcare Natural Lawns. The cost difference was negligible at best, but I would happily pay much more for the peace of mind associated with not applying pesticides to my lawn. Has there been a competitive bid process to really evaluate the cost differential? I, along with many of my friends and acquaintances, would happily divert funds from questionable projects (e.g., beautifying the medians on certain boulevard streets east of Lake Drive that are inhabited by fewer than 20 homes collectively) and instead use those funds to develop a comprehensive natural lawn care strategy for the village. Such strategy should, in my opinion, include assessing a fee for all organizations who use our public spaces (e.g., boot camps at Klode) that would help offset any increase. And if there are a few unsightly dandelions, big deal. Nothing that some weed digging tools and 20 residents can't resolve on an occasional nice day.

Liberals are the weeds of the human race.

Is it that people really want pesticides or is it about the cheapest form of management? Mowing and throwing down cheap pesticides have been the village's primary form of managing green space for so long that I think residents don't really know things any other way, and any money spent on real turf management looks expensive by comparison. The village continues to give weed complaints more weight because it helps them justify this bottom-of-the-barrel form of management. They need to focus on growing thick, healthy grass and relieve compaction so our kids aren't getting concussions. Private sports groups who rip up fields should pay for the damage they cause every season. I think most reasonable people would be willing to pay a little more money to eliminate the known risk posed by pesticide exposure AND to get better playing fields.

How much is the sign going to cost for Craig Councel Park and How much extra does it cost to add the WFB logo onto the water tower?

The people who apply the pesticides are adults. Kids who are smaller are not as able to tolerate the chemicles in pesticides. Also, if there is even the slightest risk that pesticides pose a health risk to children and/or adults, don't we owe it to the kids to be proactive? Health vs aesthetics?

Let Craig Counsell pay for his own sign& don't paint WFB on the Water Tower. Food, Clothing , and Shelter is all my family can afford right now. And remember, since the BIG referendum project for our schools was completed, there's a lot less green space at the schools for pesticide to be laid down. What's wrong is too many of the 'trust fund' Whitefish Bay residents have too much time on their hands, so they figure out how the rest of us should live our lives and how they believe we should spend public money. Get a job and use that money to do what you want. Lastly, what's wrong with Boot Camp in Klode...someone makes a few bucks? I'm sure there's been a few private lessons on the tennis courts. Get a life!

I find it curious that people look at this as an economic issue rather than a public health issue.

Someone who lived in China for many years told me that China looks at its people not as a resource but as an expense. For years, the Chinese have made policy decisions based on the economics of human life instead of the intrinsic value of human life. The comments above remind me of my conversation with my friend. As we lose the sense of the intrinsic value of human life, it becomes easier for us to make decisions that bypass considerations of health for the sake of the dollar. So, here we are with a field expressly designed for young human beings, but contaminated with chemicals that are known carcinogenics and hormone interrupters. This spraying expresses the values of those in charge of the field. They may be more comfortable with the policies of The People's Republic of China than those of small town America where we want to raise our children in a healthy environment, free of toxins whose combining effects are yet unknown. This was a poor decision, executed poorly and with little regard to the safety of our precious baseball players, coaches and umpires.
http://www.ehhi.org/reports/lcpesticides/summary.shtml

It appears that people are not limited to voting only once in this poll, it this correct?

Hey Bob McBride,
Can you show us any evidence that the pesticide applications applied in Whitefish Bay DON'T interrupt hormones, cause cancer or other diseases? Why don't you spend a little less time spewing ignorant comments, and sit down with some pediatric oncologists, neurologists and toxicologists? You actually might learn something.

Zyklon B was a cyanide based pesticide. Not very good for dandelions, but...

I'd hardly call the Canadian government, the State of New York, the State of Connecticut, the City of Cleveland, and the Village of Shorewood's decision to ban pesticides to protect public health a quirky obsession. Are you aware that as of 2005, the 53217 zip code had the second highest rate of breast cancer in the U.S.? Is it just pesticides, no it's not. It's the fact that there are over 100,000 chemicals on the market today - in everything from building supplies to toys - that are building up in our tissues. Combine that with pesticides, water pollutants, air pollutants, and whatever else is lurking out there. World-wide public health organizations are now focusing on the link between environmental toxins and disease onset because there is so much evidence that the two are related. Perhaps you'll be the lucky one whose genetics will protect you from developing these diseases regardless of what you're exposed to, but there is a portion of every population whose genetics put them at higher risk of developing disease because of these exposures. It's about protecting our most vulnerable populations - the unborn, children, and anyone walking around out there who may get sick because these toxins cause just the right amount of genetic mutations to trigger a disease. I'm not interested in playing Russian Roulette with my kids' health.

I found it totally ironic that the Village allowed the landscape company to spray pesticides at Cahill during the exact same weekend the park hosted Green Day in the Bay and WFB was named a Bird City Wisconsin. All that and then spray chemicals? Something wrong with that picture.
Toward that end, the Whitefish Bay Garden Club is taking steps to host a weed-out day at Klode Park. We plan to invite the entire community and will encourage scout troops, other community groups, and all Village residents to join us on June 30th from 9am to 11am. If it is successful, it is the hope and intent of the WFB Garden Club to expand this to other village parks.Community involvement is what makes our Village strong. Rather than pointing fingers and bickering over costs, lets come together and make a difference.More information will follow in the weeks to come, but mark your calendars now. Bring your kids and their friends and your fiends and donate 2 hours to our village. Make a positive difference in our quality of life ion WFB

Bob McBride - Are you able to prove to me that my baby's genetic based disability or my mother's lymphoma are not from pesticides. Because I worked out daily in Klode park while pregnant and my mother lives across from Cahill park. I have often questioned if there is a correlation. When someone you love is afflicted by conditions that research has shown to be environmentally based, you think twice. I hope you don't have to experience this before you open your mind.

I'm ok with weeds....just cut the grass. The village doesn't have to spend any money on pesticides....I'm guessing most of 'us' against pesticides would be ok with that :)

Also, Bob, you are right that no one has the right to insist the Village pay for something unnecessary.....pesticeds are not necessary nor is eliminating weeds. So we agree :)

Beautiful consensus! Now if only the broader dispute could be worked out as seemlessly as you two just resolved it.

We haven't heard from the "weeds are bad for my kid's allergies" folks yet, Sally.

I'd be thrilled with no pesticides and a field of grass mixed with weeds. We'd all save money. And dandelions bloom for about three or four weeks out of 52.

The breast cancer study, done for the Miilwaukee Jewish Federation , showed 25 %of the residents in this zipcode are of Jewish heritage, mostly Ashkenazi Jews. Two percent of Ashkenazi Jews have a genetic mutation which puts them at a higher risk for breast cancer. This was one explanation for higher rates of breast cancer in the north shore. High fat diets are associated with breast cancer also. BUT, skip the pesticides altogether, save the money, and cut the lawn short. I've pulled a lot of weeds out of the fields in Whitefish Bay, but never had any company. Its easiest after it rains, so when you Baseball and Soccer kids have a rainout, get them out there.

I find it troubling that all these People in the village who are opposed to pesticide use have to knock themselves out going to meetings, bringing in experts, developing a comprehensive turf management plan, etc., but when the sports teams want to spray? Instant approval. No problem.

If there is compelling science behind these health claims, why haven't our elected state or national leaders taken these issues to the legislative front? I am really neutral on the issue but feel our state and national leaders should be determining legislative action, not our local leaders. Cars did not have seat beltsfor years and it was not the role of village government to legislate such.

Perhaps we could take a bit bigger view. Pesticide run-off is ruining our lakes and streams and the very delicate ecosystem. Fertilizers and pesticides over stimulate lake plant growth, suffocating plankton and small fish and larger fish and wildlife. Perhaps we should all plan a large field trip to discovery world to learn how we are damaging one of the greatest natural resources on the plant so that we can have and nice green lawn and our kids won't have to run over dandelions!

Perhaps Discovery World could be more honest and show how MMSD dumps human excrement in our precious Lake Michigan after a rain. Then maybe the Mayor of Milwaukee Tom Barrett would do something!

This is what MMSD does and where the waste comes from. With 28 communities participating,I doubt Mayor Barrett will have much say as only one mayor.

MMSD is a regional government agency that provides water reclamation and flood management services for about 1.1 million customers in 28 communities in the Greater Milwaukee Area. We serve 411 square miles that cover all, or segments of six watersheds.

one does not have to prove that pesticides killed anybody all one has to do is show that there is a PROBABILITY based on the chemical used. chalk to line the infield nobody complains about cause due to its chemical nature there is a low probability of a problem. people who spread it if studied probably would not have a higher cancer rate.
they could not prove cause and effect for smoking it was banned based on statistical studies on smokers death rates and the fact that the hundreds of chemicals that smokers put in their lungs had a chemistry that might cause lung cancer.