Ok Sci

As the last member and deciding factor of the Genericville City Counsel to vote on whether or not to use Malathion in our city, I had to carefully consider both sides of the proposal. After reviewing the pros and cons of using the pesticide Malathion to reduce the risk of spreading the West Nile Virus through mosquitoes, I have decided that the unknown short and long-term risks to society and the environment are not worth the proposed outcome. There are currently too many uncontrolled and unknown risk factors that ultimately persuaded my decision to not allow the pesticide Malathion to be used in our city.

First and foremost, the potential of illness and/or fatalities to human life from being exposed to the pesticide Malathion is greater then the potential of illness and/or fatalities from the West Nile Virus itself. According to recent studies, it is projected that there could be 50 cases of West Nile Virus in the city of Genericville, with two of them being fatal. While unfortunate, these projections are almost half of the estimated 90 illnesses and four fatalities to humans caused by exposure to Malathion. Even though both sets of numbers are not precise, it only makes sense to vote in favor of the decision that predicts the least amount of illnesses and fatalities to human live. As if the decision to preserve human life was not enough, there are other unknown factors that influenced my final decision.

Introducing Malathion into our environment would undoubtedly kill the West Nile Virus spreading mosquitoes, but what else will it kill? Eliminating an approximate 90% of the mosquito population in our city would be great, but if the pesticide kills other wildlife (i.e. birds, other insects, fish, and trees) in addition to the mosquitoes, our economic balance would be compromised. The long-term economic effects of this pesticide are unknown. Therefore, exposing our environment to this chemical may cause more harm than good in the long run. Until a complete...