The goal is commendable. The enthusiasm is inspiring. But could it be that popular worldwide movement “Guerrilla Gardening” has possibly life threatening consequences?
According to Toxic Metals in Soil-Plant Systems, “toxic metals in our environment, especially in soilplant systems, are of concern in recent years in view of their potential for transfer to human beings and consequent effects.” Nicole Willner reports in her article for Planet Green that “typically found heavy metals such as lead and mercury or arsenic and petroleum can be found in soil where old homes, buildings, landfills or heavily trafficked highways once stood or still stand.”
Consider for a moment what it means to work the land, to grow plants, to consume the food produced by these plants. It means coming into physical contact with the soil and its contents. It means taking into the body all the things those plants absorbed from the soil.
By gardening unknown land, these guerrilla gardeners take the risk of exposing themselves, their children, their neighbors, and their pets to toxic, contaminated soil. Consider the locations often chosen for guerrilla gardens: unwanted, otherwise unused, urban land. One has to ask oneself why this land goes unused in the first place. Without known history by virtue of long term ownership or accurate scientific testing, is it worth taking the risk for a statement garden?
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