Well the wacos at Toronto City Hall have finally done it. Under the
leadership of the ill-informed and incredibly ignorant chair of the board of
health, Mr. Joe Mahevic the city has put together a bylaw that will
effectively ban the use of pesticides on lawns and golf courses within the
city of Toronto.

The " Greenies " on council state that it is time for the citizens of their
fine city to begin exploring alternatives to synthetic pesticides for
controlling weeds and insects on their lawns. Synthetic pesticides such as
common weed spray which have been around for over 50 years now without a
single documented problem concerning humans will be banned from use. Exactly
what " organic " alternatives they see as a solution to the problems wasn't
disclosed.

The city itself instituted it's own form of pesticide restrictions on
city-owned property a few years ago. Back then Jack Layton, the now famous
leader of our NDP party, was just a humble city councilor at the time and
spearheaded the move. Pesticide use by the public works department was
severely curtailed and we were assured by Jack that all would be well.
Everything was fine, of course, for a few years. Now that Jack has moved on
to new challenges we are left with a city with parks and boulevards that are
all but destroyed. The cost to repair the damage will be astronomical.

The incredible irony in it all is that the city of Toronto is currently
dumping pesticides down the storm sewers in an attempt to control the
mosquito population and gain control of the west nile virus. I guess it's ok
for the city to dump larvicide down the sewers and eventually out into Lake
Ontario and eventually into our drinking water, but it's going to be a crime
for me to spray my lawn with a weed spray that will only go on the lawn and
will completely decompose in 14 days leaving nothing behind but a few dead
weeds.

If anyone wonders if what the " greeenies " say is true that "you can keep a
healthy, virtually weed-free lawn without the use of pesticides", you should
take a drive through Toronto. The truth of the matter is that if you simply
fertilize a lawn and don't treat the weeds the weeds will eventually take
over.

Good luck with the new bylaw Toronto. I think you are going to need it.

Peter H