Laws in Canada
No Ban Needed - CropLife
"We encourageresponsible use of pesticides
for all their uses including:
• urban green spaces,
including lawns and gardens
• agriculture/horticulture/
forestry/industrial
vegetation management
• structural pest control
• golf courses and
recreational
sports turf
• personal use
including insect repellents
and pool chemicals".
CropLife Canada's
Nov 7, 2011 Presentation
to Special Committee,
See Slide 5.
No IPM in Nova Scotia
Since April 2011,IPM lawn care companies
in Nova Scotia
must use the same
"allowable" products
as everyone else
on
residential, commercial,
government and
institutional properties.
For the allowable
pesticides list, click here.
For exceptions, click here.
For education info
released March 22, 2011,
click here.
Use Safely
"If you chooseto use a pesticide
in or around your home,
you are responsible
for using it safely".
Government of Canada
website.
Labelled Use is Dangerous
"However, one need onlyto read
the pesticide label
of many typical
household pesticides
to realize
that these are
dangerous substances -
in the sense
that they are quite
capable of causing
significant health and
environmental impacts.
For example:
Avoid breathing
of spray mist.
Avoid repeated
contact with skin . . .
Avoid contamination
of aquatic systems
during application."
West Coast Environmental Law Association
Nov 7 2011 Presentation
to Special Committee on Cosmetic Pesticides.
Unnecessary Risk
"The governmentbelieves
the use of pesticides
to control weeds and insects
for purely
cosmetic reasons
presents an
unnecessary risk
to our families and pets,
especially when
we can have
healthier
lawns and gardens
without chemicals."
Ontario Ministry of the
Environment Pesticide website.
Low Risk Pesticides
For excellent info onlandscaping problems,
and low risk
"environmentally friendly"
pesticide products,
see Revelstoke's
Environmentallly Friendly
Pesticides brochure.
Weed N Feed Bans
Weed N Feedis a herbicide/fertilizer
combination product
with 3 active ingredients:
2,4-D
Dicamba
Mecoprop (MCPP)
Click on the toxic ingredients
to find out why
seven provinces have
Weed n Feed bans:
Alberta 2010
New Brunswick 2009
Newfoundland and Labrador 2012
Nova Scotia 2011
Ontario 2009
PEI 2010
Quebec 2003
Health Canada's
Dec 31, 2012
"uncoupling" ban of
herbicide/fertilizer products
did not stop sale of
Weed N Feed ingredients.
When will these
toxic ingredients
be banned in Canada? BC?
Reconsider RoundUp Safety
"The French team,led by Gilles-Eric Seralini,
a University of Caen
molecular biologist,
said its results
highlight the need
for health agencies
to reconsider
the safety of Roundup.
'The authorizations
for using these
Roundup herbicides
must now clearly
be revised
since their toxic effects
depend on, and
are multiplied
by,
other compounds used
in the mixtures.' ”
Weed-Whacking Herbicide
Proves Deadly
to Human Cells
Scientific American
June 23, 2009.
2003 Roundup Ban
In Sept 2003,Denmark was the first
country to ban
spraying glyphosate,
the active ingredient
in Monsanto's
Roundup herbicide:
“The chemical has,
against all expectations,
been sieving down
through the soil
and polluting
the groundwater
at a rate five times
more than
the allowed level
for drinking water. . .
more than
the allowed level
for drinking water. . .
This is very surprising,
because we had
previously believed
that bacteria
in the soil broke down
the glyphosate
before it reached
the groundwater.”
Third World Network's Biosafety Information Service
September 16, 2003.
When will Health Canada
decide on acceptable
glyphosate residue limits?
All Insects Pesticide Target
"Pesticide use killsbeneficial insects
as well as targetted insects."
Gardening for pollinators
brochure.
Thompson Shuswap
Master Gardeners
Association.
Help BC go Pesticide Free!
The Canadian Cancer Societycontinues to lead BC's
health and environmental
groups' advocacy for a
province-wide ban.
See Coalition's Feb 3, 2012
ban statement.
Review ban legislation
given to BC's Environment
Minister in 2010.
Join the CCS's "Pesticide Free
BC" Facebook discussions.
Take action! to help BC
go pesticide free.
Health Canada's Flaws
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PMRA's Conflict of Interest
" . . we asked ourselveswhether
it is possible
for one agency,
the Pest Management
Regulatory Agency (PMRA),
to perform
two virtually
conflicting tasks,
namely that of
approving
chemical pesticides
as requested
by industry
while
at the same time
regulating them
in order
to protect
human health."
Pesticides,
Making the right choice
for the Protection
of Health and the Environment.
Parliamentary Standing Cttee
on Environment and
Sustainable Development.
May 2000 Report.
See Chair's Preface to Report.
Biased PMRA Studies
" . . . the researcherswho have carried out
the studies
that are presented
to the PMRA
are paid
by the company
which is making
the product
they are examining.
The company
will have designed
the experiment
in a way most likely
to make their product
look good.
And if the test
goes badly
for the product,
the company's unlikely
to forward it
to the PMRA."
"Bias Built into
Feds' Pesticide Use Review
BC Doctor"
The Tyee.ca Oct 22, 2011
Why originally approved?
"It is very pleasingthat EFSA (European
Food Safety Authority)
now acknowledge
there are significant
environmental risks
associated
with these chemicals.
It begs the question
of what
was going on
when these chemicals
were first approved.
Rachel Carson's Silent Spring
was 50 years ago
but we have not
learned the lessons."
"Insecticide 'unacceptable'
danger to bees,
report finds."
The Guardian
January 16 2013.
2,4-D is OK - PMRA
". . . data and informationsubmitted. . . support
the regulatory decision
for 2,4-D and
no further changes
are required."
Health Canada's
Pest Management
Regulatory Agency (PMRA)
July 2013 Re-evaluation
Update of May 2008
Re-Evaluation Decision.
2,4-D Bans
2,4-D isbanned in
Denmark, Norway & Sweden.
Newfoundland & Labrador,
Nova Scotia, Ontario
and Quebec
have banned 2,4-D.
New Brunswick and PEI
have banned
some 2,4-D products.
Alberta has banned the sale of herbicide/fertilizer products containing 2,4-D.
Nova Scotia, Ontario
and Quebec
have banned 2,4-D.
New Brunswick and PEI
have banned
some 2,4-D products.
Alberta has banned the sale of herbicide/fertilizer products containing 2,4-D.
in Canada? in BC?
Misguided Committee
" All this explainswhy the PMRA
(and its recent fans,
members of BC's
Special Committee on
Cosmetic Pesticides)
and
the health
and medical community
reach opposite conclusions
regarding pesticides
and human health.
The doctors rely upon
the real-life human
epidemiological research,
rather than the
confidential
industry-produced
animal test data
or the PMRA's
evaluation reports
of
this test data."
"Misguided Recommendations,
Due to Reliance
on a Deficient
Regulatory System."
Prevent Cancer Now website.
Need Low Dose Tests
"Like the hormoneswhose actions
they disrupt,
endocrine disrupting
chemicals
can follow what
endocrinologists call
bi-phasic, or non-monotonic,
dose response curves.
This makes it
impossible to predict
the effects
of low-dose exposures
based upon
high-dose experiments.
The effects can be
not only
different,
but opposite.
While well established
in medical endocrinology,
such responses
have been
less well understood
in traditional toxicology."
Public Policy
Statement 2009 - 2012
American Chemical Society
Missed Low Dose Harm
"Because allregulatory testing
has been designed
assuming that
'the dose
makes
the poison,'
it is highly likely
to have
missed
low dose effects
and
led to
health standards
that are too weak."
Does 'the dose
make the poison?'
Pete Meyers & Wendy Hessler
Environmental Health News
April 30, 2007.
Low Dose, Big Effects
“We conclude that . . .the effects of low doses
cannot be predicted
by the effects
observed at high doses.
Thus, fundamental changes
in chemical testing
and
safety determination
are needed
to protect human health.”
"Hormones amd
Endocrine-Disrupting
Chemicals: Low Does Effects
and Nonmonotonic Dose Responses"
Endocrine Reviews, June 2012.
See Environmental Health
News March 15, 2012
article on study.
Reduce Exposure Warning
"The Ontario Collegeof Family Physicians (OCFP)
is
strongly recommending
the public
reduce
their exposure
to pesticides
wherever possible."
"Ontario Family Physicians
Warn of Pesticide Dangers"
CNW Newswire
June 19, 2012
For OCFP's executive summary
and report, click here.