Calling for a lawn pesticide by-law:
The CHO has been calling for the City of Ottawa to pass a by-law that would restrict the cosmetic use of lawncare pesticides. Halifax, Montreal, Toronto, Hamilton, Vancouver and over
140
other Canadian municipalities, as well as the Province of Quebec, now protect citizens from unwanted exposure to these ubiquitous lawn care toxins!
On May 28, 2008, Ottawa City Council overwhelmingly endorsed, with a 17-7 vote, the Ontario Government's initiative to ban the use and sale of cosmetic pesticides in Ontario (Bill 64 – The Cosmetic Pesticide Ban Act). Ottawa Council also recommended that the provincial legislation be amended to permit municipalities to pass bylaws regulating cosmetic pesticide use consistent with the intent of the provincial legislation – to ban the use and sale of cosmetic pesticides. With this Ottawa joins the City of Toronto in
requesting this amendment.
Background: On April 22, 2008, Earth Day, the Ontario Government introduced Bill 64 - "The Cosmetic Pesticide Ban Act, 2008" - that will implement a province-wide ban on the cosmetic use and sale of lawn and garden pesticides. The ban would likely take effect next spring. However, CHO has major concerns that Bill 64, as currently worded, has unacceptable flaws that need to be corrected. Please visit CHO's Action Alert page that details what you can do to help improve the Bill.
About CHO:
The CHO is a coalition of individuals, health care professionals, scientists, and health and environmental organizations working to ban the cosmetic use of lawncare pesticides in Ottawa, Canada. The CHO supports healthy, sustainable landscapes by encouraging organic non-toxic pest management strategies, and seeking a by-law restricting the use of pesticides for lawncare and gardening.
The CHO seeks to achieve this objective by:
- Creating a social environment where non-toxic pest control methods are the norm;
- Encouraging users of toxic pesticides to switch to safer alternatives; and,
- Advocating the adoption of a bylaw restricting pesticide use for cosmetic purposes in urban Ottawa.
The CHO endorses the City of Ottawa pesticide policy for public property, which states:
"Public health is the primary determinant as to whether or not a toxic substance shall be used in urban areas of the City of Ottawa. Pesticide use shall be limited to cases where the health risks of application of the pesticide are clearly less than the risk to human health resulting from no action, and where the pesticide to be used poses less risk to health than any other practical method of solving the problem."
As safer natural organic lawn care methods and Ottawa organic lawncare companies exist, there's no need to rely upon harmful synthetic pesticides. A pesticide bylaw makes good sense!
The time has therefore come for Ottawa City Council to adopt a pesticide by-law that respects the basic rights of us all to a healthy environment with clean air, clean water and clean soil.
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