Mind Your Own Turf

Today’s Globe and Mail reports that Canadian environmental groups may soon succeed in getting the Province of Ontario to ban the use of lawn pesticides used for “cosmetic purposes.” They’ve managed to get such bans in the Province of Quebec as well as in dozens of cities, including Toronto and Halifax. Their success is part of a larger campaign to rid the world of man-made chemicals—without regard to the impacts—no matter how bad. For further insights on their efforts see this CEI study.

Such bans are not only foolish, they can prove dangerous. After all, do the greens really expect people to manually pull all the weeds from their lawns? Sounds like a good recipe for carpal tunnel syndrome to me. Moreover, “cosmetic uses” likely include products that do such valuable things as control lyme disease-carrying ticks and other vermin.

There is no good evidence to suggest that these products properly applied pose a serious public health risk or environmental problem, nor is there evidence that the allegedly “natural” alternatives won’t pose greater risks.

There is an easier solution for greens that don’t want exposure to these substances in their own yards—don’t buy them. As for the rest of us, let us decide for ourselves—unless you can demonstrate that we have done you harm in a court of law.