A coalition of Wellesley officials, community organizations and local businesses were scheduled to be recognized in a State House ceremony on Tuesday for their work over the past year developing the first town-wide strategic plan to reduce pesticide use as part of a broad campaign to reduce the use of pesticides on town and private property.
Led by Pesticide Awareness Coordinator Sarah Little of the town’s Health Department, the coalition drafted the pesticide reduction strategy for town-owned properties, featuring an Organic Pest Management Policy. In addition, the group conducted a public education campaign (the Wellesley Pesticide Awareness Campaign) that included distribution of printed information, creation of a web site (www.ci.wellesley.ma.us/nrc/pesticide) with information and links to other resources about the dangers of pesticide use and the alternatives, and presentations on organic landscaping techniques for both homeowners and professional landscapers.
In addition to the town’s Health Department, other municipal departments participating in the coalition include the Natural Resources Commission, the Department of Public Works, the School Department and the Board of Selectmen. Businesses and organizations participating include the Wellesley Cancer Prevention Project, Bread and Circus Whole Foods Company, the Charles River Watershed Association, the Northeast Organic Farming Association, the Needham Garden Center, Russell’s Garden Center, Strata, and Boston Tree Preservation.
The coalition’s work was funded in part by a Toxics Use Reduction Networking Grant (TURN) from the Toxics Use Reduction Institute at the University of Massachusetts, Lowell. The ceremony at the State House on June 19 will recognize the efforts of five other TURN grant recipients, in addition to the Wellesley group.
The Toxics Use Reduction Institute established the TURN grants program in 1995 to encourage involvement by community organizations and municipalities in the state’s Toxics Use Reduction Program, known as TURA (Toxics Use Reduction Act of 1989). TURA promotes safer and cleaner industrial processes that enhance the economic vitality of Massachusetts firms, while protecting the environment, workers and public health.
For more information, contact Eileen Gunn at TURI at 978-934-4343 or Sarah Little at the Wellesley Health Department at 781-235-0135.
