Air and water pollution get a lot of attention, but our polluted soils have already had impacts on human health

This is an enormous subject, but it can be boiled down to a simple fact: The soil does a great job filtering out toxins and contaminants for us. The problem is we have created a massive burden on the soil’s ability to sift out the long list of contaminants. When the soil is unable to keep up with the assault of pollutants, the toxins enter into the environment including our food chain. When exposed to contaminants over time, the contaminants accumulate in the tissue of organisms and bioaccumulation takes place. The contamination level increases each step up the food chain, and you and I are right there at the top of that chain. This increasing contamination is called biomagnification. It is pretty alarming thinking about how many pollutants and how much may be accumulating in our bodies.

The vast number of elements that have contaminated our soils, including lead; minute plastic particles; chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides; pharmaceuticals; livestock manure; wastewater; not to mention sewage waste containing viruses entering the soil, can lead to all sorts of health problems. Already we are seeing antibiotics enter the soil and ultimately leading to drug resistant bacteria and pharmaceutical hormones producing sterile amphibians. And it seems like every week there is yet another recall of tainted produce.

Soil is the organic matter where water, oxygen and nutrients are stored for crops, and is filled with beneficial living organisms. If the organic matter is depleted from the soil it becomes inert - dead dirt - no longer able to filter contaminants and nourish crops. Once soil is degraded it cannot be recovered in the span of human life, and we are rapidly degrading the soil. The greatest cause of soil degradation and pollution is human activity: agricultural practices; industrial and manufacturing practices; landfills; deforestation; and urbanization. Not only are contaminants passing through our food chain, but sustaining reliable production of quantity and quality food suffers as we lose healthy soil.

Can we still save the soil? Only if we make it a priority, at every level of soil use. We absolutely must continue to pressure our governments at all levels to strictly control activity that produces pollution and soil degradation as well as polluting emissions. Polluted soils must be remediated and depleted soil must be renourished and allowed to regenerate. To reinforce the importance of organic farming and sustainable practices, we as consumers need to support sustainable growers as well as non toxic manufacturers. Big Ag continues to deplete the soil of nutrients and substitute with chemical fertilizers, often applying excessive amounts that runoff into our water sources and damage the soil microorganisms. This needs to be better controlled and the use of cover crop must be encouraged to reintroduce nutrients into the soil and prevent erosion.

On a personal level we can try to minimize our exposure by washing our hands after working in the garden; eliminate or at least limit our use of chemical fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides; carefully wash our produce whether from the grocery store or our own back yard; keeping children from putting dirty fingers in their mouths; reduce, reuse and recycle; and keeping our homes free of dust and dirt that may be harboring contaminants. As gardeners you are already probably composting to revitalize your soil and its’ ability to dilute toxins. We all need to continue to employ sustainable and organic gardening practices.