The Town of Fort Frances held a public meeting at the Civic Centre on Thursday night to inform residents about the use and control of pesticides here.
Don Mitchell, a regional pesticides specialist with the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, explained how pesticides are regulated, classified, and controlled in the province.
“It’s an issue people have strong views about,” he noted. “People should have enough information to make an informed choice.”
The main regulator of pesticides is Health Canada, through the Pest Management Regulatory Agency. It looks at both the safety and efficacy of different compounds, and approves them for use in Canada.
In Ontario, the MoE puts further controls on pesticides by classifying them according to strict categories, ranging from highly toxic or very persistent in the environment to relatively innocuous with low persistence in the environment.
Chemicals rated as more dangerous only can be sold to licensed applicators or certified agriculturists while the less toxic ones are available for purchase to the general public.
The MoE is responsible for ensuring licensed applicators are following the rules of how to use each compound. “People are being looked at all the time,” Mitchell stressed.
He also fielded questions from those on hand for the meeting.
One resident suggested the town ban the use of pesticides within town limits entirely. “It’s dangerous. It’s a poison,” he argued.
Mitchell said according to a ruling by the Supreme Court of Canada, municipalities do have the right to pass bylaws limiting or banning the use of pesticides, but added those decisions are up to the individual municipalities themselves.
Fort Frances CAO Mark McCaig noted the town would consider such a move if there was enough concern from the public.
“We don’t just pass laws. We do it with active public consultation,” he remarked.
(Fort Frances Daily Bulletin)
Fort Frances Times
Local News from Across the Rainy River District
