photo credit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/mmwm/14766879212/sizes/l
Should Kamloops institute a ban on cosmetic pesticide use? This is a question which I encourage Kamloops citizens to think about over the next month. I would welcome you to share your thoughts with me.
I might be the swing vote on this issue.
There are five of us serving on city council, out of nine, who currently support a ban on cosmetic pesticide use. I am one of the five, but I have also committed to keep an open mind to changing my mind. This is really due to the strong concerns raised by good people who oppose a ban.
This is an issue which divides our community. at the May 26th city council meeting, due to the many good people who support a ban, Councillor Tina Lange proposed the motion to institute a ban. In the seven days between the May 26th meeting and the June 2nd meeting, council received more than 700 emails from those supporting and those opposing.
I think this is the most emails in the shortest period of time that I have received in my almost seven years on council.
At the June 2nd meeting, to allow folks who wanted to address council on this issue to do so, we postponed a vote on Councillor Lange's motion until July 14th.
I had originally thought that council should postpone this vote until early October, until towards the end of the lawn care and gardening season. I wasn't sure, however, we would have enough support for this from council. Also, I have come to the view that six weeks of time is enough time for citizens to research and share their views. Given a cosmetic pesticide ban has been discussed in the community for almost a decade and given the already robust community input, I now feel we don't have to wait until October to collect the information for council's decision.
The cosmetic pesticide ban that Councllor Lange has proposed would cover the use of pesticides with certain ingredients on lawns and ornamental plants on residential properties. It would not include fruit bearing trees. In conversation with Councillor Lange, she is currently proposing the ban go in effect January 1 2016. Council does not have the legislative authority to ban the sale of pesticides, we can only ban / regulate the use.
There are currently two major, and to me quite significant, reasons why I support a cosmetic pesticide ban. I thinks it's only fair to outline them so those who are seeking to change my mind can speak to these reasons specifically.
First, to me, many credible health professionals have indicated the the use of pesticides could have a negative impact on human health. They also indicate that reducing the use of pesticides is a good precautionary measure. Key health groups that have influenced my thinking are the Public Health Association of BC, the UBC Med School Department of Pediatrics, and the American Academy of Pediatrics.
- Source material for UBC Med School Dept of Pediatrics and the Public Health Association of BC - http://www.newswire.ca/en/story/654451/medical-community-debunks-common-myths-and-urges-bc-government-to-act-on-pesticides
- Source material for American Academy of Pediatrics: http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/130/6/e1757.full.pdf+html
Second, for cosmetic purposes of lawn and ornamental plant maintenance, there seems to be many good alternative practices that can be employed. This is where I believe we need to provide strong educational programs for people on these alternatives.
Some source materials:
http://www.richsoil.com/lawn-care.jsp (a bit of humour used here to pass on the info)
