TAKE BACK MONTGOMERY COUNTY NEIGHBORHOODS

Montgomery County officials are trying to legislate right in your back yard. (And your front yard, too.) That's right, local legislators have banned the use of lawn care products that leading scientists in our country have approved for use. These products are critical components of a healthy lawn and much needed to ensure lawns in local communities continue to provide oxygen, clean our air, protect waterways, cool our neighbohoods, and offer the myriad of other health and environmental benefits they provide in every other town across the country. It's time to take back our neighborhoods and stand up for our community and our families by challenging this legislation.

Take Back Our Neighborhoods and Your Property Rights!

Tell Montgomery County officials that policy decisions need to be based on sound science and not emotional assumptions. Montgomery County residents and businesses should have the ability to use products that are approved by Federal and State regulatory entities and legal for sale in Montgomery County and legal to use in EVERY other county in Maryland, D.C. and Virginia. These products are beneficial to people and the environment and protect your property and our environment.

We urge you to contact your councilmembers directly using this link.  It’s quick, easy and effective.  Plus, we do not store any of the information that you share in communicating with your councilmembers.

Status of Montgomery County Pesticide Ban

Pesticides can no longer be used on lawns, even on private property, in Montgomery County.

In contradiction of volumes of science, in spite of opposition from the county’s own Agricultural Preservation Advisory Board and the determination of the Montgomery Soil Conservation District that this law would be “bad policy”, a county-wide Pesticide Ban was approved by the County Council on October 26, 2015. 

Local residents and businesses that stood to be profoundly affected by the ban filed suit against the county. After winning the initial trial, the case was overturned on appeal, and a subsequent appeal to the Maryland’s highest court was denied.  This means that as of July 11, 2019, Montgomery County is in the process of determining implementation of the ban.  When originally passed in 2015, there was a two-year grace period to ensure adequate communication, education and implementation.

Benefits of Healthy Lawns

Most people appreciate the asthetics afforded by healthy lawns, not realizing their real benefit goes far beyond their beauty. Healthy lawns sustain families and communities and support the environment. Here's a look at just some of their value.

• Natural Coolants – Grass is much cooler than asphalt or cement. It acts as an “air conditioner” for the surrounding area. In fact, lawns can be 31 degrees cooler than asphalt and 20 degrees cooler than bare soil. .
• Environmental Cleaners - Grass plays a vital role in capturing dust, smoke particles and other pollutants, and it produces oxygen.
• Water Protectors – Healthy lawns absorb unhealthy runoff that might otherwise filter into bodies of water.
• Air Cleaners – Grasses absorb carbon dioxide and break it down into oxygen and carbon. In fact, a 50’x50’ lawn produces enough oxygen for a family of four.
• Noise Minimizers – Lawns and plants dramatically reduce noise pollution; they can reduce noise levels by 20 percent to 30 percent over hard surfaces like concrete and pavement.
• Turfgrass slows down and absorbs runoff into bodies of water.