Canada: Golf industry swing at BC pesticide proposal

A golf industry spokesperson is pushing back against a proposal for an anti-pesticide law in British Columbia, even though the draft legislation explicitly exempts golf greens.

New Democratic Party leader Adrian Dix last week introduced a bill in the legislature that would ban the cosmetic use of pesticides in the province, a move that had Liberal Premier Christy Clark saying she has long supported just such a ban and would like to work with the NDP to make it happen.

Clark's support -- which included few details -- drew the following response from the British Columbia Allied Golf Association chair Barrie McWha, as quoted on Public Eye website: "We think the policies that are in place right now are good and sufficient . . . Our hope is that at least government can consider this issue on the basis of scientific fact as opposed to emotional opinion."

McWha might be reassured to know that while the NDP's bill would outlaw the use of a pesticide "primarily for a cosmetic purpose," it spells out an exception when the chemical "is used or intended for use [in] relation to a putting green."

The bill would include both golf course and practice greens. No other exemptions are included in the bill, though the NDP has been clear it would not affect the agriculture and forestry sectors, where pesticide use is not considered cosmetic.

The Canadian Cancer Society B.C. and Yukon has for several years supported banning the sale and use of cosmetic pesticides saying it would protect the health of children and families. It welcomed Clark and Dix's support for such a ban in B.C., noting 35 municipalities in the province and three other provinces have already banned the cosmetic use of pesticides.