Dave Sullivan
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Aug 15/01) - Debate is expected this fall on whether to ban the practice of spraying to kill the city's unwanted bugs and plants.

Coun. Kevin O'Reilly will serve notice Aug. 27 that he's pushing for a ban on spraying for cosmetic purposes.

The city hasn't sprayed in years but a ban would apply to residents who spray their own lawns and gardens.

A June 28 Supreme Court of Canada ruling has pushed the issue onto Yellowknife's political agenda.

The court ruled against two pesticide companies in a small community near Montreal, saying that municipalities have the authority to impose bans.

The ruling singles out the Northwest Territories, Yukon, and six provinces as having the authority to do that.

A ban may not have much of an impact in Yellowknife. There are no pesticide companies, although the multinational Orkin PCO Services recently hired an agent in Yellowknife, contracted by Hay River-based Wesclean Northern Sales.

Wesclean owner Brian Sawka says he won't know the impact on his business until the extent of any proposed ban is known.

"It all depends on what sort of restrictions they want to impose."

He said most people in Yellowknife buy and apply their own chemicals, and he's not licensed or equipped to spray outdoors in Yellowknife.

"There's not that much demand for spraying trees."

Most of Sawka's business in the city involves killing indoor pests like flower beetles, he said.

He's less worried about Canada's court ruling than U.S. precedents that are stopping apartment and condo dwellers from killing indoor pests.

"You have to inform all the neighbors and it involves quite a bit more labour. I would have to get their consent in an apartment setting, because they're sharing walls," he said.

Yellowknife's city's administration is preparing recommendations for a spraying policy that will be in councillors' hands Aug. 16, said Mayor Gordon Van Tighem.

"It's not something we can ignore because we do have a lot of outdoor activities, and we're in mosquito country."

He said the city takes more passive measures to keep mosquitos at bay, like draining stagnant water.

The Canadian Association of Physicians for the Environment has said there is enough evidence to support the contention that some pesticides pose significant health risks, especially for children.

O'Reilly says of Yellowknife, "people in the past haven't used pesticides much and let's keep it that way."

He expects some councillors to oppose a ban, including those who are generally against city regulation over matters like mandatory bicycle helmets.

Halifax and at least 37 Quebec municipalities have passed bylaws restricting the cosmetic use of pesticides.