City council may be putting a lid on the use of cosmetic pesticides on lawns and gardens.
The move comes after a request by the Canadian Cancer Society to ban the use of the chemicals, which studies have linked to increased rates of leukemia, non-Hodgkins lymphoma, and cancers of the brain, lungs, kidney and prostate.
"People don't have any training - they often use much more than needed," society health promotion co-ordinator Kerensa Medhurst said. "Even if you practice pesticide-free gardening you can be exposed to pesticides if you neighbours use them."
Chemical pesticides are easily spread by wind, water runoff and ground water, she said.
City council unanimously voted to have city staff examine the impacts of imposing a ban and report back to council. Any ban imposed by city bylaw would only affect residential properties and city-owned lands.
Nearly 160 communities in Canada have imposed a ban on cosmetic pesticides, including 36 in B.C., Medhurst said.
Those communities have seen a 51 to 90 per cent reduction in pesticide use when bylaws are combined with education campaigns, she said.
"In Toronto they saw an 80 to 90 per cent reduction of the top three pesticides in urban streams," she said.
"I'm excited about the direction we're taking," coun. Dave Wilbur said. "There are numerous nontoxic products you can use."
No timeline was set for staff to return a report to council.
