In August 2009, the British Columbia government committed to consulting British Columbians on “new statutory protections to further safeguard the environment from cosmetic chemical pesticides.” Their intention is to seek input and then determine if, and how, legislation could be amended to address concerns about the cosmetic use of pesticides in British Columbia.
A consultation paper discussing the issues is available for review and comments on the Ministry of Environment website. Comments are due by Feb 15, 2010.
Cosmetic use is when pesticides are used for beautification or “cosmetic” purposes to improve the appearance of lawns, gardens, golf courses, sports fields, parks, schoolyards and playgrounds, etc.
Pesticides are not necessary for the maintenance of healthy, disease resistant landscapes and rarely are pests present at sufficient levels to cause unacceptable damage.
The cosmetic use of pesticides poses needless risks to public health and the environment and BC lags behind other provinces by not banning the sale and use of cosmetic pesticides. Ontario and Quebec have passed bans. New Brunswick’s weaker Integrated Pest Management (IPM) ban started December 19, 2009, with other Maritime Provinces to follow.
In Ontario a coalition of 15 health and environmental groups urged the government to pass a pesticide ban and BC groups are gearing up to do the same. On April 20, 2009, the Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment, the Canadian Cancer Society, the David Suzuki Foundation and Toxic Free Canada called on all political parties to support a BC province-wide ban on cosmetic pesticides.
In September, 200 delegates to the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) convention endorsed a motion urging the provincial government to enact legislation to ban the sale and use of cosmetic pesticides province-wide. As well, 18 BC cities and towns have already passed bylaws restricting cosmetic pesticide use, but municipalities lack the authority to regulate pesticide sales, which weakens the municipal bylaws by making them difficult to enforce.
Take Action!
Contact Premier Campbell and your MLA
Participate in the consultation process. The ministry is planning to host one or more web and telephone-based information sessions to review the consultation paper and answer questions regarding the consultation process. Send an
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for more information.
Email a Canadian Cancer Society or David Suzuki Foundation letter.
Fill in a ToxicFree Canada’s online petition.
Get a poster from PesticideFree BC to put up in your community.
Participate in the Pesticide Consultation.
Susan MacVittie works with World Community Development Education Society in the Comox Valley, Canada. The Best Place on Earth Must Be Pesticide Free was previously published in the Watershed Sentinel the independent voice for environmental news in British Columbia. Visit: http://www.watershedsentinel.ca
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