Go For the Gold!

It is hard to believe the Olympics are over and we are thinking how we want to keep the spirit of the Olympics alive.

We have decided that we will be awarding some medals of our own to acknowledge those local retailers that are eliminating the sale of cosmetic pesticides and are putting our health and the environment first.

Although Richmond has passed a cosmetic pesticide bylaw that restricts the use of pesticides on lawns, gardens and parks, there currently exists a loophole that still allows local retailers to sell these harmful pesticides.

We have called upon the provincial government to ban the sale of pesticides in B.C. so that retailers, that we feel are unethically selling pesticides when a bylaw is in effect, will be forced to remove them from their shelves.

Many healthier alternatives to synthetic pesticides exist, and the following retailers have chosen to carry them and have removed the more harmful ones from their shelves.

AND THE GOLD MEDALS GO TO...

HOME DEPOT (eliminated the sale of cosmetic pesticides in 2008)

RONA (eliminated the sale of cosmetic pesticides in 2009)

GARDEN WORKS

SILVER MEDALS are awarded to those companies and organizations that have taken steps to eliminate pesticides and are striving for a healthier tomorrow.

THE CITY OF RICHMOND (has made great strides with a cosmetic pesticide bylaw but earns a silver because they continue to use pesticides on the pitch & putt and on the lawn bowling green)

PRICKLY PEAR GARDEN CENTRE (are currently transitioning to more natural pesticides)


The following companies have FAILED TO RECEIVE A MEDAL as they continue to carry pesticides on their shelves and have NOT set a timeline for elimination. Please remind these retailers that you would like to see them eliminate cosmetic pesticides from their shelves!

Art Knapp's
Canadian Tire
Home Hardware, Lansdowne Mall

Please support those companies that have taken harmful lawn and garden pesticides off their shelves. Please let us know of local retailers that we can add to our recommended list. Thanks!

RALLY FOR A PROVINCIAL PESTICIDE BAN!

Please join us this Saturday, January 30th at 11 am at Canadian Tire on Cambie and 7th, Vancouver.

We will be showing our support for a Province-wide ban on the sale of cosmetic pesticides. The provincial government has been consulting the public about a potential ban on pesticides and this consultation ends on Feb. 15th!

Although we are proud that Richmond has passed a pesticide bylaw, there are still retailers that sell pesticides because our province hasn't yet banned them. Retailers such as Canadian Tire, Art Knapp's and many others continue to sell them because they are more concerned with profits than people!

We want to send a clear message that British Columbians don't want to be exposed to unnecessary chemicals!

Bring signs reading, "Ban Pesticides Now!", "We Want A Pesticide Free BC", etc. Bring children and pets :)

Please give one hour of your time to truly make BC the best place on Earth!

Hurray for Richmond!

At last night's city council meeting, our mayor and councillors adopted The Pesticide Use Control Bylaw that prohibits the use of pesticides on private or city-owned property for enhancing the appearance of a lawn or garden! Hurray for Richmond!

We are thrilled to see Richmond join 23 other municipalities within B.C. that have adopted similar pesticide bylaws. Richmond's bylaw is one of the best in the province by taking a precautionary approach and not allowing unnecessary exemptions.

We look forward to the educational component that the City of Richmond will be rolling out soon.

Please see today's update on Pesticide Free B.C.'s website (scroll to the lower right hand corner for more information):http://www.pesticidefreebc.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=52&Itemid=118

We will be continuing to lobby the provincial government to prohibit the sale of pesticides and ask that you do the same by contacting our local Richmond MLAs:
linda.reid.mla@leg.bc.ca
john.yap.mla@leg.bc.ca
rob.howard.mla@leg.bc.ca

Please ask that they work to prohibit the sale of pesticides across B.C. for the health of ourselves, our children, our pets and our planet.

Tips for a pesticide-free lawn...

So, now what?

Now you can decide what you want to do- Do you want to enjoy dandelions as part of your lawn's ecosystem? If so, no need to proceed. Be happy that you are allowing bees a source of nectar and use some dandelion leaves in your next salad!

If, instead, you strive for an organic lush, green lawn- without dandelions- be inspired by photos here: http://www.safelawns.org/.

Then you can try some of these tips for a healthy, pesticide-free lawn:

1. Spread grass seed every spring and fall. Choose grasses that suit local conditions and try to plant more than one species.

2. Use a lawn aerator to help the soil breathe. Aerators can be rented or purchased from garden centres or equipment rental companies.

3. Mow high (3" height) to develop deeper root systems and provide tolerance to heat, pests and disease.

4. Leave clippings on the lawn as this adds organic nutrients and moisture to the soil.

5. Water deeply but infrequently to get deep rooting and try to water in the morning. Watering in the evening can increase risk of disease as grass is left wet longer. Most lawns require 1 inch of water per week or 1 hour of watering.

6. Pull weeds by hand or with a handy tool (http://www.leevalley.com/garden/page.aspx?c=1&p=44725&cat=2,2300,44822&ap=1) when the soil is moist. Drop some grass seed in the hole to discourage weeds from returning. You can also use a vinegar spray (at least 5% acetic acid) or boiling water for spot treatment between hard surfaces. Corn gluten meal can be used on lawns to discourage annual weeds.

7. Spread organic material, such as compost, on your lawn each year to add nutrients to the soil. Add organic fertilizer in the spring and fall.

8. Want to get technical? Monitor the pH of your soil with a test from a garden centre. It should be between 6.0 to 7.0. You can add agricultural lime to raise the pH, peat moss or sulphur to lower it.

You can find more information from:
http://toronto.ca/pesticides
http://www.healthylawns.net/

Hurray! A bylaw is on its way!

On April 27, 2009, Richmond's mayor and councillors made the decision to put health and environment over the aesthetics of our parks and lawns by going forward with a cosmetic pesticide bylaw.

We are currently waiting for the draft bylaw to come forward. We are hoping that this will be accomplished very soon.

While we are waiting, we are working hard to make sure that the Provincial government also knows that we want these toxic products removed from store shelves. We are asking our candidates what they will do to ensure that cosmetic pesticides will be banned in B.C. as they are in Ontario and Quebec.

Please check out this website for information on making B.C. Pesticide Free:
http://www.pesticidefreebc.org/

This website has some excellent information on alternatives to pesticides and it also gives information on how you can get involved and the things you can do to let our government representatives know that the public desires a ban on the sale of cosmetic pesticides for our health and environment!

Earth Day/Anti-Pesticides Parade & Rally on Thursday!

Please join us and other concerned citizens for an Earth Day/Anti-pesticides rally in Richmond on

Thursday, April 23rd from 11:00-12:30.

CropLife Canada, a trade association that represents companies such as Monsanto, Syngenta, Dow & DuPont is meeting at the Richmond Executive Inn,7311 Westminster Hwy to talk about how to prevent a province-wide pesticide ban.

First they polluted our food with chemicals and GMO’s. Then they began buying up the world’s seed supply.

Now, they’re trying to prevent us from protecting our communities from pesticides.

Let’s show them that we care about our health, our community, and our planet more than the weeds in our lawn. Bring musical instruments, costumes, kids, strollers, stilts, dogs, and puppets and we’ll make this an amazing event!!

Bring your own signs too: "I love my family more than my lawn", "Health & Environment before Profits" or "Pesticides aren't safe for Bees or Me!"

Meet us at 11:00 at Tim Horton's on the East side of Richmond Center, and we'll walk over together.

See you then!

Free Workshops Focus on Organic Gardening, Pest Management in Richmond

The City of Richmond is offering free workshops on organic gardening and pest management.

The workshops are designed to educate residents about the alternatives to pesticide use and move Richmond toward becoming a more sustainable community, including the promotion of good gardening practices.

For further information, click the following images to enlarge the Sustainability Workshop brochure or click this link to download the PDF. You will need to register for the workshops here.