You make a good point regarding the squandering of fresh water resources,
however a smart irrigation program recommended and implemented by a
knowledgeable contractor will not only help with mild to intermediate
infestations, it will also reduce the overall consumption of water for
those
homeowners who do insist on a lush lawn. The correct irrigation design
which factors in soil type (run-off/absorption rates etc.) as well as
proper
water requirements pertaining to individual plant and turf types can
safely,
effectively and efficiently get the desired results. Irrigation is a
very
subjective issue (as is the use of pesticides) but education and knowledge
on the part of the contractor and the homeowner is paramount.

Here in Toronto, the safe use of pesticides has come under serious
scrutiny
of late, leaving homeowners and lawn-care businesses faced with a newly
passed by-law (albeit an unnecessary, confusing, convoluted, conflict
producing, polarizing and unenforceable one) limiting the use of them.
While there continues to be a huge uprising of the horticulture industry
to
have the "ban" re-evaluated and/or struck down, with some amendments made
appealing to both the industry and the activists, it seems that this issue
is far from over. If the activists have their way, the by-law will have
an
enormous impact on the industry, and homeowners will need to find
alternate
solutions to infestation problems.

Tony.



Well I think that Toronto will follow Halifax's lead and the results will be
the same. The companies in the business will pack up and leave and the
homeowners will buy and attempt to apply the pesticides themselves.
Personally I can't see the by-law being repealed and I don't think that
there can be any common ground between the industry and the "
environmentalists". There is no sol'n... in 5 years we will see the results.
If anyone doesn't know what turf looks like when pesticides aren't used you
only have to take a stroll through a schoolyard or check out a boulevard in
Toronto these days. What you have there is not really turf, it's more a
combination of knotweed, dandelion, blackmedic and dirt. Lawns as we have
grown to know them will be a thing of the past in Toronto.

Peter H