To the editor: Protect Ohio's soil and water

“Ohioans can protect the water and soil by maintaining lawns and crops organically,” writes Laurel Hopwood of the Ohio Sierra Club.

A new groundbreaking study raises the red flag. Neonicotinoid (neonic) insecticides are pervasive in the Great Lakes and its tributaries.

Why should we care? When bees are exposed, they lose their navigational skills and can’t find their way home. Losing these pollinators can have an ill effect on our food supply. That’s not all. Bird and fish populations also decline. Entire ecosystems can be at at risk.

The study comes as draft legislation is circulating in Congress which would remove requirements that the U.S. EPA consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Department and the National Marine Service over pesticides’ impact on threatened and endangered species.

What can be done? Our elected officials should take notice. Ohioans can protect the water and soil by maintaining lawns and crops organically.

LAUREL HOPWOOD
Cleveland, Ohio

Editor’s note: Ms. Hopwood is the agriculture chair of the Ohio Sierra Club.

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Residents weary from crime

I don’t think the Toledo Police Department report on the number of shootings in Toledo is accurate. I think the people of Toledo have just grown weary of the lack of response from the TPD and just don’t bother to report as many shots fired.

On Feb. 22, 2012, I personally called the TPD about a man in a bar on Reynolds Road with a gun in his back pocket while drinking alcohol and dancing. I reported that he had not pointed it at anyone yet but was getting aggressive. Forty-five minutes later, two officers showed up, talked to him, and had him put his gun in his car.

When the guy came back in the establishment he was looking for a fight with whoever called on him. I have also called them several times in since then about shots fired in my neighborhood with little or no response.

I, for one, will not call them again unless someone is down from being shot or stabbed. Why bother? By calling you just put yourself in a position to be retaliated against.

ROBERT GEIS
Bapst Avenue

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