A Chemical Reaction
After winning film festival awards from Florida to Montreal, “A Chemical Reaction” will be presented at a special one-night showing at The Regent Theatre in Arlington on September 16th at 7:00 PM.
The feature documentary tells the story of an unlikely community initiative in Hudson, Quebec started with one lone voice. In 1984 Dr. June Irwin, a dermatologist, noticed a connection between her patients’ health conditions and their exposure to chemical pesticides and herbicides. She brought her concerns to town meetings that lawn chemicals posed severe health risks and had unknown side effects on the environment.
Dr. Irwin’s relentless arguments and persuasive data eventually led the town to enact a by-law that banned the use of all chemical pesticides and herbicides. The most mighty chemical companies in North America pushed back with their full legal weight on the tiny town. This set off a chain of high-profile court cases that culminated in the Canadian Supreme Court in 2001 with startling and industry-changing results. Executive Producer, Paul Tukey, a former HGTV host and the founder of the U.S. non-profit organization known as SafeLawns.org, is one of the nation’s leading experts on organic lawn care. After becoming seriously ill with acute pesticide sensitivity from applying chemical lawn products in his own lawn care business, Paul became an outspoken advocate for alternatives to chemical lawn care. He travels across the country lecturing on the subject and has written the leading book, “The Organic Lawn Care Manual.” Paul Tukey appears frequently on screen while interviewing key figures in the anti-pesticide movement in Canada and the U.S.
It’s reported that 78 million U.S households use home and garden pesticides. This accounts for the spreading of 67 million pounds of synthetic pesticides on lawns annually. Americans spend $700 million each year on pesticides for green, weed-free lawns. The award-winning documentary film “A Chemical Reaction” – while being a heart-warming, inspirational story about the origin of the natural lawn care movement in Canada and the U.S.– is also a powerful tool for individuals and organizations interested in reducing and/or eliminating pesticides from the environment, especially around homes and schools.