DID YOUR COUNCILLOR VOTE TO PUT CHILDREN AT RISK?

From: "Helen Jones" <hjones@chebucto.ns.ca>
To: "'Sustainable-Maritimes'" <sust-mar@chebucto.ns.ca>
Date: Sat, 2 Dec 2000 10:37:01 -0400
Importance: High
Precedence: bulk
Return-Path: <sust-mar-mml-owner@chebucto.ns.ca>

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"Pesticides are known to play, or are suspected of playing, a role in a
myriad of diseases and developmental abnormalities, including: cancer
[brain, breast,, stomach, prostate and testicles], childhood leukemia,
reduced fertility, damage to the thyroid and pituitary glands, lowered
immunity, developmental abnormalities and behavioural problems”
 - Federal House of Commons Report on Pesticides, May 16,2000, page xviii.

DID YOUR COUNCILLOR VOTE TO PUT CHILDREN AT RISK?

A HALIFAX CITY STAFF REQUEST FOR “START UP” FUNDING
FOR THE PESTICIDE BYLAW (P-800)
WAS APPROVED BY ONLY A FOUR VOTE MARGIN
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 2000

Whether or not it was their intention to continue exposing children to
cancer-causing lawn pesticides while walking to and from school in the
Halifax Regional Municipality, nine Councillors who opposed initial funding
for the pesticide bylaw narrowly missed achieving this result.  HRM
residents are urged to contact their councillors to let them know that
protecting children and community health deserves the highest possible
priority, and that, in a province staggering under health care costs, it is
important to support any initiative likely to reduce those costs.

Those who OPPOSED FUNDING THE PESTICIDE BYLAW were:
[Note:  Email addresses for new councillors will be available soon.]

District   1  Steve Streatch       Eastern Shore-Musquodoboit
Email:  streats@region.halifax.ns.ca <mailto:streats@region.halifax.ns.ca>
Phone: 384-2109 (office),  497-2995 (cell)

District   2  Gary Hines           Waverley-Dutch Settlement
Phone:  860-4358 (office),  488-4802 (cell)

District   6   Brian Warshick      Westphal-Waverley
Phone: 435-8476 (res),  488-3800 (cell)

District   8   Bruce Hetherington  Woodside
Email:  hetherb@region.halifax.ns.ca <mailto:hetherb@region.halifax.ns.ca>
Phone:  463-6827 (res),  488-4808 (cell)

District  12   Dawn Sloane         Halifax Downtown
Phone:   490-4752 (res),   488-4812 (cell)

District  17   Linda Mosher        Purcell’s Cove-Armdale
Phone: 477-8618 (res),   476-4117 (cell)

District  18   Steve Adams         Spryfield-Herring Cove
Email: adamss@region.halifax.ns.ca <mailto:adamss@region.halifax.ns.ca>
Phone: 477-0627 (res),  497-8818 (cell)

District  21   Len Goucher         Bedford
Phone: 832-8902 (res),   452-1726 (cell)

District  22   Reg Rankin          Hammonds Plains-Timberlea
Email: rankinr@region.halifax.ns.ca <mailto:rankinr@region.halifax.ns.ca>
Phone: 876-0146 (res),  499-3744 (cell)

These Councillors need to hear immediately from area residents who care
about community health and want appropriate action on the approved pesticide
bylaw. Getting ready for April 1, 2001* requires public education
initiatives and registration services to be up and running well before this
date. Expenditures for this advance planning and preparation were fully
anticipated by Council when the bylaw was passed, and are not “over-budget”
as opponents claimed on Tuesday.  The contingency fund from which the money
came was created for this type of need.

But the knives were out.  Even while several opponents were claiming they
“supported the bylaw,” they voted against funding for it.  None of those
Councillors put forward any constructive alternatives for the start-up
total.  At least one implied threat to Council was made in the form of a
reminder to budget for court challenges from industry.

Congratulations to those members of Council who showed courage and
leadership by supporting the necessary funding of approximately $200,000 to
begin the transition to a clean and green community, so that parents and
others will have information on safe alternatives to landscape pesticides in
order to protect the health of our children and the entire community.
Thank you.
_________________________________________________________________
*Bylaw P-800 states, “Commencing April 1, 2001, no person shall carry out or
permit or suffer to be carried out any pesticide application on property all
or part of which lies within a 50 metre radius measured from the boundary of
a property containing any school, licensed day care centre, park,
playground, licensed senior citizens’ residence, university, church or
hospital.”



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