Landmark UNI Study Examines Pesticide Use in Iowa Communities
In a recently released study, the University of Northern Iowa has for the first time estimated the amount of lawn pesticides applied in four Eastern Iowa communities as part of a larger effort to reduce the amount of harmful pesticides applied to urban landscapes.
The study estimated that about 37,000 pounds of weed-killing products were applied to residential lawns in Cedar Falls and Waterloo in 2018, a troubling figure due to the link between pesticides and a number of adverse health outcomes, particularly in children, such as prenatal and childhood cancers, chronic illnesses, neurodevelopmental delays and behavioral disorders.
