Spring 2002 Table of Contents

Spread the word with a "Salmon Friendly Lawn" sign

If you take care of your lawn in an environmentally responsible way, you can get a free "Salmon Friendly Lawn" yard sign to spread the word.

The Snohomish County chapter of the Sierra Club and Project SeaWolf are offering the free signs for those who use no pesticides, fertilizers, nor herbicides, contribute no toxic runoff that pollute streams, and water lawns only minimally.

The sign is made of heavy, waterresistant paper and might best be saved for display next spring. Check out Sea Wolf's "Oceanic Navigator" at http://home.earthlink.net/~projseawolf/spring2001.pdf to see the sign design.

The "covenant" that comes with the sign, endorsed by many other local environmental groups, reads in part: "Thanks immensely for taking a part in this wonderful public education effort! By placing one of these signs in your yard, you are helping to educate friends and neighbors about the vibrant connection between our lawns, and the rivers and streams running into the great Puget Sound all around us!

"As an environmentally-friendly homeowner, you have also pledged to limit your use of toxic chemicals and dangerous herbicides, pesticides and fertilizers, to limit your level of yard watering, and to practice new and improved methods of lawncare such as using a mulching mower, or "grasscycling," which means leaving your grass clippings on the lawn after cutting to help naturally fertilize your garden!

You're taking an important step to improving the health of our neighborhoods too. The health of our ecosystems is influenced by what we, as homeowners, do to our yards. Most people don't realize how much damage some of our lawncare chemicals can do to the plants and animals living in the streams and rivers around us. Every time it rains, these chemicals wash off our lawns and driveways, into the stormwater drains and into local rivers and streams. Chemicals can harm birds and fish, and fertilizers promote the growth of algae that choke streams and rob fish of valuable oxygen. Pesticides can also be very dangerous to children and pets.

You'll also be doing your part to help conserve water by limiting the amount you use on your lawn. Research has shown that up to 40% of our summer water supply is used by lawn watering. By adopting a few new gardening habits, you can help to reduce the amount of water you use, while also decreasing the size of your utility bill!

We hope that your new lawn sign will generate some productive discussion among your neighbors. By placing this sign in your lawn, you've made it clear that you understand the role that all of us must play in protecting our salmon, our eagles, our whales and our entire ecosystem! You should be proud of the example that you are setting - we certainly are!"

To order your sign, send a selfaddressed, stamped envelope (.55 cents postage) at least 6" x 9", to SeaWolf, PO Box 929, Marysville, WA 98270. Any donations to help pay for printing are welcome.

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