Victoria Weeds Out Pesticides
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Weeds Out Pesticides
Date:
Wed, 10 Jul 2002 08:04:50 -0400
From:
Stephen Tvedten <steve@getipm.com>
Organization: Get Set Inc. (www.getipm.com)
To: Paul Helliker <phelliker@cdpr.ca.gov>
Director, State of California, Department of Pesticide
Regulation
cc: Christine Whitman whitman.christine@epa.gov
Dear Mr. Helliker, I thought you might like to read an article dated: Tuesday, July 09, 2002 from the Times Colonist (Victoria) entitled: Victoria Weeds Out Pesticides - City aims to reduce risk to human health and environment by Malcolm Curtis.
The city of Victoria is clamping down on its use of pesticides by expanding practices followed by the parks department to include other civic operations.
A draft policy, endorsed last week by council, builds on a program launched in 1992, when the city began an integrated pest management program (IPM) in parks and public green spaces to cut down the use of chemicals.
The policy restricts -- but does not ban -- the use of chemical pesticides to minimize their risk to human health and the environment.
Expansion of the program to other departments primarily affects the engineering department, which looks after weed control in gutters and on roads and parking lots.
The policy sets out in writing practices that have been followed since 1992 when the city first established the IPM program for the parks department. This emphasizes preventive techniques that have led to a 97 per cent reduction in the use of pesticides, said Michelle Gorman, program co-ordinator.
Instead of using chemicals to spray roses against mildew and aphids, the city uses less toxic insecticide soap, for example. It also uses insects that eat aphids.
"Last year, I released 140,000 adult lady birds," said Gorman.
They keep aphid populations, which ballooned in last year's drought, in check not just in rose beds but on boulevard and park trees.
The city has virtually halted use of herbicides on its grassy areas and playing fields through better turf management.
Victoria had a moratorium on the use of such chemicals as Killex on playing fields for three years in the 1980s because of controversy over their reported adverse effects on animals and children. The moratorium has been lifted but the use has been drastically cut back.
The parks department has also focused on using native plants and other species that grow well in the local climate and are generally less prone to insect problems.
"Can we do better? Sure," said Gorman. But having a written policy for all city departments will help further improve practices, she said.
The engineering department has not been using pesticides because it lacks staff members who are registered applicators, as required by the provincial government.
But weed infestation can lead to damage to city infrastructure, Gorman said. She said hot water and infra-red techniques can be used to kill weeds instead of chemicals.
Coun. Denise Savoie said she is hoping the draft policy can be improved by setting more specific objectives that spell out what pesticides are banned from use.
Savoie, who chairs the Capital Regional District's roundtable on the environment, hopes the city's policy, once further refined, will become a template for other municipalities to follow.
The CRD is planning to develop a more comprehensive set of regulations that would extend beyond municipal operations to include private property, she said.
An estimated 57 per cent of homeowners in the region use herbicides in their gardens but most of them are not experts in use of the chemicals or their environmental impact, Savoie said.
The aim is not to interfere with the ability to deal with pests that threaten public safety or health, she said. However, "my goal is to see the greatest reduction in pesticides that we can as a region."
© Copyright 2002 Times Colonist (Victoria)
Michelle Gorman, integrated pest management co-ordinator for the city of Victoria, releases some ladybugs (also known as ladybirds) in the rose garden in Beacon Hill Park.
http://www.canada.com/search/site/story.asp?id=A2EF2410-D32F-48BB-8FC3-B64EDCA13155
Well Mr. Helliker, What more can I say but: "On Victoria!". I have posted a free pest control book on the web that uses safe and far more effective alternatives, it is entitled: THE BUG STOPS HERE. You can download it for free at: http://www.thebestcontrol.com .
Respectfully, Stephen L. Tvedten
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