LAWNS

ARE ECO-UNFRIENDLY
By Beatrice Miller
8 April 2021
GNOME

How. Are lawns bad for the Environment?
Homeowners want a beautiful and healthy lawn that complements their house. They

spend hundreds of dollars paying people to maintain it or just make their kids do it for

free. How come we put so much effort in maintaining a front lawn? Perhaps so out nosy

neighbors don’t judge us too harshly. However, all this effort in maintain out front lawns

keeping the trimmed and green is ecologically damaging. According to the NRDC lawns

consume 3 trillion gallons of water a year, lawnmowers collectively require 200 gallons

of gas and 70 million pounds in pesticides are used to keep insects away. 3 trillion

gallons of water that enough water to fill 4.5 billion Olympic sized swimming pools.

Water conservation in the U.S is starting to become a problem. At least 40 states are
anticipating water shortages by 2024, the need to conserve water is critical. Conserving

water is imperative so that for future generations will have a clean supply. In Bermuda

they collect rainwater from the roofs of their houses and use it many purposes including

watering their plants and grass. In the state of Texas harvesting rainwater is legal but in

most states it isn’t. Water conservation is essential, and we shouldn’t be wasting so much

of it on our yards. According to the EPA, each gas-powered lawn mower produces as

much air pollution as 43 new automobiles driven. Lawn care produces 13 billion pounds

of toxic pollutants per year that’s 10% of our air pollution. So much of urban areas are

covered in grass that are being damaged to make life easier for us but are having horrible

impacts on the environment. It’s not just Mowing, and Watering most conventional

fertilizers are produced using ammonia, which is extracted from natural gas, and two-

thirds of natural gas is obtained by fracking. Therefore, lawns also contribute to all of the

environmental damages, including water pollution, caused by fracking. Pesticides are

having a harrowing impact on the incest and animals we need. They can contaminate the

soil, water and other vegetation. Kills insects and weeds which is harmful for their

consumers in the food chain. Also, pesticides are linked to diseases such as Alzheimer’s,

ADHD and Cancer; they can also harm various biological systems and lead to birth

defects. Having a nice yard is great for a view but not essential to our lives and not worth

all the risk were taking with our futures.

References

One Team (2018, October 3) Grass Lawns are an Ecological Catastrophe,

Retrieved from https://www.onlynaturalenergy.com/grass-lawns-are-an-
ecological-catastrophe/

2
Paul, E. (2019, June 20) Lawns may be green, but they’re terrible for the
environment, Retrieved from https://ggwash.org/view/72499/lawns-are-
good-for-almost-nothing-environment-eco-landscaping

EPA, Water Conservation at EPA, Retrieved from

https://www.epa.gov/greeningepa/water-conservation-epa