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ACTION NEEDED RE- A "COMMUNITY FRIENDLY" PESTICIDE BYLAW The March 6th Staff Report proposal to (1) continue the no-spray policy on municipal property, and, (2) provide 100 metre no-pesticide zones around only people with a medical letter stating they have potentially life threatening symptoms..... is totally inadequate as a public health policy designed to protect the WHOLE community from further involuntary toxic landscape pesticide exposures.. It will guarantee more people get sick. It won't protect children at school, walking to and from school, or at most homes. Amazingly, it would still be legal to spray next to a school in session. Doesn't protect drinking water wells (there are thousands in HRM), and landscape pesticides are being applied right next to them. Will likely lead to litigation from industry challenges claiming that no one has ever been harmed when pesticides are used as directed. This is untrue, but court cases, in themselves, can have a chilling effect on municipalities and their budgets. Doesn't protect the workplace. Doesn't acknowledge the serious problems in the Canadian pesticide regulatory process, now part of the public record (Federal Auditor General's Office; House of Commons Standing Committee on the Environment and Sustainable Development). Doesn't acknowledge Canadian doctors think Canadian children are at risk from pesticides, and are saying so clearly. Both the CNIB and the Canadian Union of Postal Workers (NS-PEI local) have written Council asking for help; the letter carriers are getting sick delivering the mail, and the 1,200 blind do not have the option of avoiding a treated area because they cannot see the warning signs. The proposal before Council ignores these requests for help. Metre readers and children delivering newspapers also frequently encounter residential pesticide drift. What is truly hard to understand is that in the very short summary of the recommendations from the Pesticide Bylaw Advisory Report that was provided on page 6 of the Staff Report, ABSOLUTELY NO MENTION OR ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF THE MAJORITY REPORT WAS MADE. This is not even competent behaviour on the part of staff. And it fails to take advantage of the carefully worked out, and quite moderate, detailed proposal for phasing out landscape pesticides over several years - presented on page 6 and 7 of the Majority Report. The Majority Report was based on a significant 7:4 breakdown of the Committee membership, and represented among the seven signees were a wide range of technical backgrounds, including a professional landscaper. The Council meeting on March 21st could see Council finalizing its decision on the type of Bylaw it will be proposing, so this is an especially important date. TO GUARANTEE A "COMMUNITY FRIENDLY" BYLAW, as many people as possible should contact Halifax Regional Council with their views beforehand. Write or phone your Councillor (contact information is available at 490-4050; to e-mail your Councillor go to: <http://www.chebucto.ns.ca/Environment/RATE/Email_Councillors.html>. A sharp reprimand is in order re the Staff Report IGNORING the recommendations in the Majority Report from the Pesticide Bylaw Advisory Committee. Councillors who haven't had the time to read these reports carefully may not even be aware this was done. The accuracy of staff reports is important. It just doesn't make sense to appoint a committee with a broad cross section of "stakeholders" to study a problem, and then not even acknowledge or carefully review the recommendations of a large segment of that committee. The long four year campaign for a "clean and green," non-toxic community must overcome another unexpected obstacle, and do it quickly. Organizing fast enough will be a stretch, but worth trying - with help from everybody. Lot's of e-mails, phone calls,and letters have already gone to Council. Keep them coming!
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