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Sierra Club to Retailers: "Stop Selling Cypress Garden Mulch" President asks Home Depot, Lowe’s, and Wal-Mart to Stop Selling Product SAN FRANCISCO, CA : With hurricane season underway, the Sierra Club is telling retailers around the country to stop selling garden mulches produced from cypress trees, which act as storm buffers during hurricanes. "As the nation’s largest retailers, Home Depot, Lowe’s and Wal-Mart have the power to dramatically reduce needless destruction of cypress forests," said Robert Cox, newly elected president of the Sierra Club. "We are calling on these three retailers to live up to their own corporate policies of sustainability and stop selling cypress mulch. Local stores and nurseries should also stop selling the product." Following a resolution by the board of directors, Cox is sending letters to the CEO’s of Home Depot, Lowe’s and Wal-Mart asking them to stop selling cypress mulch. In coming weeks, many of the Sierra Club’s 1.3 million members and supporters will receive information about the damage caused by logging cypress trees for mulching. Waterkeeper Alliance President Robert Kennedy, Jr. recently spoke to more than 200 Waterkeepers from around the world and supporters of the Save Our Cypress Coalition at City Park in New Orleans. Kennedy voiced his opposition to cypress mulch and called on public officials to save cypress trees. Waterkeeper Alliance recently ran a full page advertisement in USA today telling consumers "Don’t Buy It." Louisiana cypress forests are the major source of trees for cypress mulch, although many mulch distributors bag Louisiana cypress in bags with Florida addresses on them to confuse consumers. "We must not cut down our natural defenses against hurricanes and flooding," said Leslie March, chair of the Delta (Louisiana) Chapter of the Sierra Club, a founding member of the Save our Cypress Coalition. "Consumers should stop buying cypress mulch and choose alternatives for their gardens." Alternative mulches such as pine straw and pine bark nuggets work without destroying coastal wetlands. Despite these options, whole cypress trees - relatives of the majestic sequoias - of all sizes are being used for mulch, and acres of swamps are being clear-cut to produce mulch. Most cypress swamps will not regrow after being cut. For more information, visit www.saveourcypress.org. # # # |
