165
Poison in the River
July l4/91 was a shocking day. On that day 13000 gallons of
pesticide was spilled into the upper Sacramento River. All
life ceased in about 50 miles of the river and much of Lake
Shasta.
To me the shock that is deeper and everlasting. The
television stations flooded the air with pictures of dead
trout floating in the water but I did not hear the big
question, "what was the purpose of shipping this Frightful
poison?"
Metam Sodium is a soil fumigant. Also called a weed killer.
It can destroy the life in the soil.
Dr. Dick Jackson, of the California Environmental protection
Agency is quoted in July 21/91 issue of the Peninsula Times
Tribune. He states that California Agriculture uses 4.5
million pounds a year.
About 35 years ago. I rented a car in San Bernardino and
followed the valley to Eugene Or. I studied the farms and
talked to farmers about what they grew and how they cared for
their soil..
An example: A pleasant farmer showed me his farm. He had l00
acres of potatoes. How much do you save for seed? None.
Why not? My land is not good enough, but with irrigation,
fertilizers and weed killers I get a crop. I ship all my
potatoes back East. I get new seed every year from .
British Columbia ,Canada. Some times it may be grown in the
State of Washington for a year and then the crop shipped down
here.
However, the biggest thing is each group should
collectively try to adopt a lifestyle that might eliminate
things like cancer and AIDS. With the knowledge available,
many of these conditions are obsolete.
