Like a lot of other people, I am concerned about the environment. I believe that global warming is a fact, not a theory. I understand that water is not the unlimited resource that most Canadians think it is. I have reconciled myself to the fact that $1 a litre gas prices are here to stay. And of course, I favour municipal bans on spraying pesticides.
It is the last one that is causing me some inconvience at the moment. You see, like a lot of other people, I suffer from allergies. They are not as bad as some people's allergies -- so far they have not resulted in trips to the emergency room -- but they the worst I have experienced in 20 years.
At first, I could not figure out why my eyes were constantly puffy and red, but then someone reminded me about the pesticide ban. I should have been able to figure it out myself -- after all, the empty lot behind my apartment is covered with the thickest blanket of dandelions that I've seen in the five years I've lived here. I guess I just didn't really think about it.
Luckily, my allergies are more of an inconvenience than a potentially fatal disease, but it make me think about bigger questions. As the earth's population continues to grow, we will eventually all be called upon to make sacrifices for the greater good of us all. At least, those of us in the sheltered, spoiled West will have to adjust our lifestyles. It may mean walking more or riding more buses. It may mean using less water and reducing the amount of garbage we generate. Somehow, though, I think it will involve a bit more than putting up with a bit of hay fever.
