Lush lawns come at a high environmental price.
North Jersey is known as the center of suburbia, with homes surrounded by lush lawns.
We rightfully take pride in our properties and enjoy how they look.
But in the extended drought we’ve been in, thinking about the impact our lawns have on water conservation and more broadly the environment is more urgent than ever.
In a drought, that’s just not acceptable.
While we’ve had a wet few weeks, that doesn’t undo a nearly yearlong drought.
The heavy use of fertilizers by homeowners is also not needed.
Adding together the pesticides, fertilizers and gas-driven mowers, our lawns actually release more carbon dioxide than they absorb — worsening greenhouse and global-warming issues rather than diminishing them.
Last summer’s record high temperatures, coupled with the drought, burned out countless lawns in North Jersey.
Ground cover is needed to prevent rains from washing bare soil into streams, lakes, rivers and bays.