An issue that has proved pesky for Coquitlam council will get a long look starting this week.
Coquitlam's new sustainability and environmental advisory committee is scheduled to meet Thursday to talk about whether the city should implement a ban on the sale and use of cosmetic pesticides.
The nine-person group, chaired by Coun. Linda Reimer, will discuss the topic, which council referred to the committee last month.
Coun. Selina Robinson, who is pushing for the pesticide ban, said she won't attend Thursday's advisory meeting but hopes the group will make a recommendation to council before the summer break as the civic election is in November.
Speaking Tuesday, Robinson said she was disappointed the committee won't have direction from staff about how to proceed with making policy; rather, the committee agenda shows previous council minutes about a proposed ban.
"I had hoped that we would actually have given them direction to make recommendations on the kind of ban we ought to have, not just recommend a ban or not," she said.
Although Robinson voted against sending the issue to the newly struck committee, she said she's pleased with its composition.
Among the experts on the panel are biologists Pamela Zevit, Sandra Baker and Damian Regan; SFU vice-president of finance and administration Pat Hibbitts; and Michael Wilson, Douglas College's department chair for earth and environmental sciences.
"They are outstanding volunteers and I was thrilled that we have these resources in our community. I'm all for engaging these people to help us make decisions and policies, and I want to make sure that we do a good job," Robinson said.
But she also said, "I'm not going to change my position. If they say we don't need a pesticide ban, then I would be very, very concerned."
In May 2009, Robinson brought a motion to the floor to ask council to gauge public feedback on the topic but that motion failed in a tie vote, with councillors Reimer, Lou Sekora, Brent Asmundson and Mae Reid opposing, citing private property rights and bylaw enforcement concerns.
Two months later, on a recommendation from Sekora, city council voted unanimously to ask the federal and provincial governments to ban pesticides and other chemicals deemed to be unsafe by federal government scientists.
Last month, Robinson re-introduced her motion, citing evidence from the Canadian Cancer Society linking pesticide use with cancer, and a 400-name petition to prohibit the toxic substances.
