From what I read, there are 'noxious weeds' and 'exotic plants'.
'Exotic plants' are those, like melaleuca, that are not indigenous
to the territory in question. Often, like melaleuca, they begin to
dominate the terrain and crowd out native species. (In the case of
melaleuca, this exotic transpires an enormous amount of water,
drying up the land. But then, so do lawns!)
'Noxious weeds' are plants, native or exotic, that humans don't
like for one reason or another - 'ugliness,' pollen, 'messing up
your lawn,' etc.
There's a good article by Middletown, Connecticut horticulturalist
Thomas Christopher in the 8/20/95 St. Petersburg Times newspaper
(reprinted from the New York Times News Service) entitled "Even a
Lawn can be Politically Correct." Here's an excerpt:
"In many American communities, half the water drawn from wells
and reservoirs at this time of year goes to lawn irrigation. The
Colorado River dies in the desert so that Los Angeles can keep its
front yards green. Long Island's aquifers are being sucked dry by
its turf.
"Our lawns may kill us with thirst. If they don't poison us
first.
"Americans have covered an area the size of Virginia with turf,
and several times a year we march back and forth with sprayers and
spreaders to blanket it with fertilizers, insecticides and
fungicides.
"Some of these chemicals reach their intended targets, but a huge
proportion wash into storm drains with the first hard rain and move
downstream."
That's where my agency comes in - Section 319 of the Clean Water
Act tries to deal with such "nonpoint source" water pollution.
However, it has no teeth, and Congress may weaken it further.
Nonpoint source pollution causes at least half the water quality
problems in Florida's lakes and rivers. So the more folks that get
into xeriscape and other more sensible types of landscaping, the
better.
And who knows - maybe your 'noxious weeds' will provide refuge for
an endangered species! (And if the property rights bills pass,
maybe the government will have to pay you to mow down weeds where
an endangered species lives!)
Al
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
