A Call To Enact Legislation Banning The Use Of Pesticides For Cosmetic (Non-Essential) Purposes In The Province Of Newfoundland And Labrador
- Target:
- Government of Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly
- Region:
- Canada
- Website:
- pesticidealternativesnl.wordpress.com
The Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides- Newfoundland and Labrador hopes you will support a province wide ban on cosmetic pesticide use in Newfoundland and Labrador. New Brunswick, PEI, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Quebec and dozens of municipalities in Canada have banned lawn care pesticides but our provincial government still permits their sale and use. The government of Alberta has banned weed-and-feed because levels of this product in waterways are approaching dangerous levels.
- Known to cause childhood cancers, reproductive and neurological problems and fatalities in children, pesticides pose a risk to health that far outweighs the look of a nice lawn.
- You may be unaware that you are being exposed to a poison, particularly if you live in an urban area. Even if you do not use pesticides, your neighbour or landlord may be doing so.
- Cosmetic pesticides are unnecessary. There are many organic lawn care methods that are easy to implement and do not involve large amounts of chemicals entering the air and water.
A PETITION TO THE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY:
A CALL TO ENACT LEGISLATION BANNING THE USE OF PESTICIDES FOR COSMETIC (NON-ESSENTIAL) PURPOSES IN THE PROVINCE OF NEWFOUNDLAND AND LABRADOR
We, the undersigned, residents of Newfoundland and Labrador, draw the attention of the House of Assembly to the following:
WHEREAS as far back as 1999 the federal Commissioner of the Environment and Sustainable Development stated in his annual report that "pesticides in the environment have been linked to lung diseases, reproductive problems and birth defects, developmental disorders, allergic reactions, lowered resistance to disease in humans, and cancer";
WHEREAS as far back as 2002 the City of St John’s, the largest municipality in the province, in a letter to the provincial government asked that the City of St. John’s Act be amended to permit the City to ban the cosmetic use of pesticides if the provincial government is not prepared to do so;
WHEREAS in November 2009 Municipalities Newfoundland and Labrador passed, unanimously, a resolution presented by the City of Mount Pearl calling on the provincial government to enact a ban against the use of pesticides for cosmetic purposes in Newfoundland and Labrador;
WHEREAS the City of Corner Brook has implemented a voluntary ban on the cosmetic use of pesticides;
WHEREAS the City of St. John’s has not used pesticides on recreational areas since 1995 and in 2010 issued the following public advisory: "To protect the health of our citizens, especially young children, City Council recommends that the general public avoid the use of pesticides on lawns and gardens for cosmetic purposes";
WHEREAS in February 2009 the Canadian Cancer Society-NL, the Lung Association-NL, and the Newfoundland and Labrador Medical Association wrote the Minister of Environment and Conservation expressing support for a province-wide ban on cosmetic pesticide use;
WHEREAS in June 2009 the above-named organizations wrote to both the Minister of Environment and Conservation and the Minister of Health and Community Services, this time on behalf of a provincial coalition of health and environmental organizations and concerned citizens, encouraging "the drafting of provincial legislation that will prohibit the sale and use of cosmetic pesticides" and stating that "the precautionary principle places the onus on government to explain why they are not acting to protect us from the unnecessary health and environmental risks posed by the cosmetic use of pesticides";
WHEREAS bans against the use of pesticides for cosmetic purposes in Canadian municipalities (over 170 at present) and provinces (Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, and Nova Scotia ) now protect the health of almost 80 percent of Canadian citizens;
AND WHEREAS Newfoundland and Labrador is now the only Atlantic province without a ban on the sale and use of cosmetic pesticides;
THEREFORE, we, the undersigned, call on the House of Assembly to enact legislation in 2011 modeled after Ontario’s Pesticides Act, banning the use of pesticides for cosmetic purposes in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador.
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The A Call To Enact Legislation Banning The Use Of Pesticides For Cosmetic (Non-Essential) Purposes In The Province Of Newfoundland And Labrador petition to Government of Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly was written by Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides-Newfoundland and Labrador and is in the category Environment at GoPetition.