Port Coquitlam councillors will consider measures limiting the use of cosmetic pesticides on private property when a report comes to the city's environmental committee later this month.
While PoCo Mayor Greg Moore said provincial legislation would be more effective in curbing the use of cosmetic pesticides, inaction in Victoria is forcing the municipality to step up with its own bylaws.
"We really feel that [provincial legislation] is the best way to deal with this," he said. "But we have waited long enough and we are just going to move forward."
A patchwork of municipal bans makes enforcement difficult, especially when products can be easily bought in neighbouring cities, Moore said.
Moore rejected the argument made by those who oppose pesticide bans that they infringe on a homeowner's private property rights.
"It is one thing when what you do on your property leaches into creeks and common property," he said. "I think there is a role for government to play in that."
The Canadian Cancer Society and the David Suzuki Foundation say pesticides can contain chemicals that are harmful to the environment and increase the risk of cancer. Scientists with those organizations have said that more than 10% of cancer deaths are related to environmental carcinogens.
Port Coquitlam has not used pesticides on city land since 1983 and has encouraged homeowners to use alternative methods, such as ladybugs, to control aphids and weeds.
