Then, there were chemicals — wondrous agents that wilted your leaves, without the gardener needing to stoop and pull under a hot sun.
But, not everyone wants to have chemicals on their lawns, or even near their homes.
While you can’t always ask your neighbour not to spray, you can ask the City to back off. The Pesticide Exemption Program is simple: Tell the City that you’re not comfortable with pesticides, and no spraying will be done on any City land within 30 metres of your property.
There is an exception: If City staff feel there is a “pertinent need” to spray a specific area, they are allowed to override the exception. What is “pertinent need?”
Well, here it is: “‘Pertinent need’ is defined as: risk to public safety (e.g. swarming/stinging insects, toxic plants), invasive insects with potential for substantial economical and ecological impact, and infestations that cannot be controlled without large scale invasive excavation. All other available methods of control will be assessed before a pesticide is used.”
This article appears in the June 2021 issue of Edify
