Environmental Science & Engineering - www.esemag.com - May 2003
Comments? send them to the editor.

Halifax takes bold step in enacting domestic pesticide bans

by Tom Davey, Editor


There is a certain irony in the colour green, which in a mere three decades has become both a noun and an adjective for environmental activism. Canadian inspired Greenpeace, for example, now rivals multinational companies in its global scope and influence.

Irony is further compounded by the fact that homeowners, in their quest for the perfect lawn, assault their turf with a variety of toxic substances, many of which are diametrically opposed to the green ethos. There have been many attempts to curb pesticide spraying but householders proclaim that theirs is private property and that they can do what they want on their own land.

While this seems not to be an unreasonable argument, the philosophical and moral issues go way beyond domestic boundaries. The trouble is that toxic substances, and fertilizers, can run off private land onto public lands, and into streams and lakes. We are dealing with some fundamental and historical human rights issues here.

The great English philosopher, John Locke, in his Second Treatise on Government in 1690, wrote that "although a waterfall in a forest may be considered public property and owned by no person, it is undeniable that if someone catches water in a vessel, that this particular water now belonged to the person who captured it." According to reader Ron Shaver (ES&E November, 2002, page 8), Locke borrowed heavily from Hooker, while Jefferson essentially paraphrased Locke when writing the American Declaration of Independence in 1776. The Declaration is one of the greatest modern political works known to history.

A more palpable example of public/ private environmental rights is eutrophication in lakes and rivers. Rapid and excessive weed growth in water bodies is often exacerbated by over-fertilization of private lawns whose run-off flows into public water bodies.

Now the Regional Municipality of Halifax, Nova Scotia, has become the first in Canada to enact a tough ban on pesticides. Hudson, Québec, is believed to be the first Canadian town to pass a by-law that prohibited residents from using garden pesticides for "ornamental" reasons.

Halifax has a long tradition of implementing environmental initiatives. It was the first city in Canada to implement a municipal composting system and during the last five years, all the Region’s households and businesses have had to separate wet garbage from dry trash and place it in specially designated bins. The Region collects the garbage and turns some of it into garden soil enhancer.

Polls show widespread support for the Region’s strong environmental measures. Even the use of perfumed products has come under environmental controls. It is forbidden to wear any kind of perfumed product, including perfumed hair sprays and aftershaves, in most public buildings.

The Federal Government, too, has responded with a Pest Control Products Act (PCPA) and, because of its national mandate, the Federal Act is extremely comprehensive, covering the importation, manufacture, sale and use of all pesticides, including insecticides, herbicides and fungicides in Canada, with stiff penalties for violations.

Beginning April 1, 2003, all residential properties in the Halifax Regional Municipality (HRM) were affected by their Pesticide By-law. The full ban restricts pesticide applications for the maintenance of outdoor trees, shrubs, flowers and other ornamental plants and turf.

However, property owners may still use products included under Administrative Order #23, which include: insecticidal soaps and herbicidal soaps, BT (Bacillus thuringiensis), nematodes, other biological control organisms, animal repellents, rodenticides, injected tree treatments, sticky media, borax, lime sulphur, ferric phosphate, pruning paint, pheromone traps, pyrethrum (or pyrethrin), Bordeaux mixture and other sulphur compounds, dormant and horticultural oils and diatomaceous earth.

The By-law appears to have solid public support. A public opinion poll conducted by Corporate Research Associates found that about 90 per cent of those surveyed in the Region use alternative sustainable methods, rather than pesticides. The Halifax bylaw applies to both residential and municipally-owned properties. A phase-in period was backed up with a strong focus on a comprehensive public information/education program.

Meanwhile, in Toronto, following a recommendation of the Toronto Health Department to ban pesticides, the deputy Mayor, Case Ootes, says that the City’s Health Department’s proposed pesticide ban was unenforceable and impractical,

But the ethics plot thickens with the advent of the West Nile Virus threat. Toronto City’s Health Board on April 8 approved dumping larvicide pellets into storm sewers. This is a different issue, posing an ethical dilemma worthy of Locke’s deep intellect. As such, the solution is unlikely to be found in City Hall.

Halifax Region is to be commended for its bold initiative and imaginative implementation in addressing a series of controversial environmental problems.

See our home page on how to order your subscription. We regret we can only accept orders from Canada and the United States.