Shift News
SHIFT News – Make BC Pesticide-Free
Editor’s Note: Good Morning. As Spring slowly creeps up on us, it means we’ll be heading out into the garden, preening the lawn and looking for greener days. It also means it’s time to think about what we’re putting on out plants and take a stand. Susan MacVittie from the Comox Valley’s own Watershed Sentinel is here today to talk a bit about how to do just that.
By Susan MacVittie
In August, 2009 the Government of British Columbia committed to consult 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 (see below) were due by Feb 15, 2010. Responses received after Feb 15 will be reviewed by the Ministry, and although they will not be inluded in the consultation summary report, it is still important that people speak out.
Cosmetic use is when pesticides are used for beautification or “cosmetic” purposes to improve the appearance of lawns, gardens, golf courses, sports fields, parks, school yards 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 ban and groups in BC 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. Email cindybertram@shaw.ca
- Email a Canadian Cancer Society or David Suzuki Foundation letter
- Send in ToxicFree Canada’s online petition
- Get a poster online from PesticideFree BC to put up in your community
- Tell your family, friends and neighbours
Working together we can help ‘the best place on earth’ become pesticide free.
Pesticide Consultation: www.env.gov.bc.ca/epd/ipmp/regs/cosmetic-pesticides/consultation.htm
Originally published in the January/February 2010 issue of Watershed Sentinel
An Editorial Partnership
Our Big Earth Media Co. and B.C. environmental magazine The Watershed Sentinel have formed an editorial partnership in which we bring you some of the hottest environmental news every month as a part of SHIFT News.
The Watershed Sentinel is a bimonthly independent environmental magazine based out of Comox, B.C. offering a mix of bio-regional and international topics that focus on health, the environment and sustainability since 1991.
As Western Canada’s only environmental news magazine, its coverage has garnered Silver and Gold medal awards for reporting from the North America-wide Aveda Environmental Awards.
Published 5 times a year, The Watershed Sentinel is subscription based – $25/year for print and $15/yr for paper-free subscriptions. Its independent status allows it to focus on content including feature and short articles on food, health, society, water, land & forests and many other topics that mainstream media may not be able to talk about!
For more info check out The Watershed Sentinel website at www.watershedsentinel.ca
This is why I love Canada. Good thing for my husband, because he wants to move back there one of these days. (I’m from Colorado where we live; he’s originally from Merritt, BC.)
I just came across this video and it is relevant to this discussion. I like the message “Tell a friend”.
http://awakeupstory.healthychild.org/
Thanks for all the links, Robin!! Will do many of those things immediately! Love the WakeUpStory from healthychild.org, too, Stacey!