HEADLINE

City Council considers restricting pesticides

TITLE

Making Toronto pesticide free

NAME

Copyright 2002 Charles Mitchell

FILE

 

DATE

Summer 2002

 

Rogers Television News

 

VIDEO

AUDIO

 

SOUND UP, B-ROLL Galley tape (SOT: 07:41:00?, shot of kids on bike) V/O

KIM GALLEY LETS HIS CHILDREN PLAY ON THE FRONT LAWN, BECAUSE IT’S PESTICIDE FREE.  HE SAYS PESTICIDE USE IN HIS NEIGHBOURHOOD IS MAKING HIS KIDS SICK.

( SOT: 07:18:04 – 07:18:17)Galley

With my kids last time they had diarrhoea, nausea and burning kind of itchy throat we knew what it was from.

B-ROLL: Galley Tape, (07:42:15,07:44:35) V/O

EVEN THOUGH GALLEY IS AGAINST PESTICIDES MANY OF HIS NEIGHBOURS USE THEM IN PURSUIT OF THE PERFECT LAWN.  BUT FOR GALLEY, EVEN WALKING TO THE PARK AND PASSING ALL THE GARDENS  IS A PROBLEM.

(SOT: 07:19:17 – 07:19:28) Galley

 You have be very careful.   There’s a park down the street. If you go to the park, you usually end up driving down because you don’t want your kids walking on it.

V/O, B-ROLL OF NEIGHBOURHOOD Galley tape (07:45:30)

PESTICIDE USE IN THE AREA IS STILL WIDESPREAD EVEN THOUGH MANY PEOPLE KNOW ABOUT ITS DANGERS. GALLEY HAS DISTRIBUTED BROCHURES IN THE AREA WARNING OF THE NEGATIVE HEALTH EFFECTS.

(SOT: 07:20:15 – 07:20:29) Galley

I’ve tried to educate most of the neighbours around here with literature.  A lot of them take the literature but then two weeks later you see the signs up again on their front lawns again.

V/O, B-ROLL: Ken Pavely tape: (00:09:10, 00:09:31)

Soknacki tape: (09:23:31)

 

 

ACCORDING TO A REPORT RELEASED THIS YEAR FROM TORONTO PUBLIC HEALTH, PESTICIDE USE CAN CAUSE ASTHMA, PARKINSON’S DISEASE, LEUKEMIA, AND HODGKIN’S DISEASE.   TORONTO COUNCILLOR DAVID SOKNACKI IS A MEMBER OF THE TORONTO BOARD OF HEALTH HE SAYS HAS SERIOUS CONCERNS ABOUT THE ILL EFFECTS OF PESTICIDES

(SOT: 09:19:15 – 09:19:29) Soknacki

There’s maybe health effects on particularly the most vulnerable in the population: the youngest, the oldest the asthmatic.  Those people might have health effects from using too much pesticides or the inappropriate use of pesticides.

 Butt Clip, (SOT:07:35:44 – 07:35:54) Galley

We’re talking about chemicals that can kill things and when you’re dealing with that kind of stuff I think it’s a little too scary… Just a little too risky to live with that in our front yards and backyards.

V/O, B-ROLL Ken Pavely tape (00:11:34, 00:12:23)

 

 

 

BUT CRITICS POINT OUT THAT THE STUDIES ARE FLAWED BECAUSE THEY FOCUS MOSTLY ON ANIMAL TESTING, AND THOSE WHO WORK WITH PESTICIDES THEY DON’T PROBE ENOUGH INTO THE HARMFUL EFFECTS ON THE GENERAL PUBLIC.  KEN PAVELY IS WITH THE ASSOCIATION OF LANDSCAPE AND LAWNCARE COMPANIES.

(SOT: 00:05:08 – 00:05:28) Ken Pavely

It looked like the report had a conclusion and they went to get the evidence to support that conclusion.  And there’s a great deal of evidence that health Canada amongst other institutions and agencies around the world that they look at all of this and if there was a problem with these products  -- when used by the homeowner and industry persons -- they would pull them

V/O, B-ROLL

Kelly Tape (11:14:22, 11:13:40, 11:31:09)

TORONTO COUNCILLOR NORM KELLY SUPPORTS THE USE OF PESTICIDES ON A LIMITED BASIS.  HE DISAGREES WITH THE BOARD OF HEALTH’S CONCERN THAT PESTICIDES CAN CAUSE CANCER. HE SAYS HIS OWN REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH AND HIS DISCUSSIONS WITH EXPERTS LEAD HIM TO ANOTHER CONCLUSION.

SOT (11:26:12 – 11:26:24) Kelly

Believe it or not there’s more cancer causing chemicals in a cup of coffee.  Fifty to 60 times stronger than any of the chemicals you’ll find in pesticides.

V/O, B-ROLL, Pavely tape (00:13:30, 00:11:53)

 STAND-UP ..UP TO “PRIVATE PROPERTY –

IN 1999, THE MEGACITY CUT DOWN PESTICIDE USE ON PUBLIC PROPERTY BY 97%, BUT IT DOESN’T REGULATE THE USE OF PESTICIDES ON PRIVATE PROPERTY //V.O…  THAT MAY CHANGE. TORONTO COUNCIL IS CONSIDERING A BY-LAW TO BAN PESTICIDE USE ON PRIVATE PROPERTY.  BUT THE  LAWNCARE INDUSTRY IS OPPOSED TO ANY SUCH  RESTRICTIONS.  THEY’VE DEVELOPED A RESOLUTION IN RESPONSE TO THE CITY COUNCIL PROPOSAL.  IT’S CALLED THE INTEGRATED PEST MANAGEMENT CODE OF PRACTICE OR IPM.

(SOT: 00:03:07 - 00:03:20)Ken Pavely

Integrated Pest Management is a holistic approach dealing with pest problems and it takes in a number of factors and different ways and methods of controlling pests, and chemicals are just one of those.

V/O, B-ROLL, Galley Tape (07:46:02, 07:46:20)

HOWEVER, THE CONTROVERSY ISN’T JUST ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT HERBICIDES AND INSECTICIDES HARM HUMAN HEALTH AND WHERE THEY SHOULD BE USED. THERE IS ANOTHER ISSUE. CRITICS LIKE KELLY, SAY RESTRICTING PESTICIDE USE COULD HURT THE LOCAL ECONOMY.

(SOT:11:27:52 – 11:28:01) Norm Kelly

It’s cost us by the way. It’s cost us in terms of tourism.  Some areas look less safe, less liveable.

V/O, B-ROLL. Soknacki Tape (09:22:40)

SOKNACKI DISAGREES WITH KELLY. HE IS PUSHING FOR RESTRICTIONS ON  PESTICIDE USE, SO THAT IT’S FAIR FOR ALL TORNOTO RESIDENTS.

(SOT: 09:20:49 – 09:21:03)  Soknacki

 

And whether it’s the healthcare industry or the lawncare industry, or any other care industry.  I think it’s important that the municipality comes in and says here some basic perimeters of where it’s safe and where it’s not safe.

V/O B-Roll, Pavely Tape (00:10:45,00:13:09)

STILL, KELLY FEELS THE INDUSTRY IS MISUNDERSTOOD.  HE SAYS, IN SOME CASES, IT WOULD BE OKAY TO LIFT THE BAN ON PESTICIDE SPRAYS ON PUBLIC PROPERTY.

(SOT: 11:30:30 – 11:30:44) Kelly

When I drive through Toronto and see weed-strewn boulevards, I don’t think anyone benefits, especially when I now know that controlling weeds through pesticides is not going to injure the health of Torontonians.

V/O, B-ROLL, Galley Tape (07:42:15, 07:41:50, 07:43:30)

NO MATTER WHAT THE LAWNCARE COMPANIES OR SOME CITY COUNCILLORS SAY -IT ISN’T A GOOD ENOUGH REASON FOR GALLEY.  HE WANTS A 100 PERCENT BAN ON PESTICIDES .  HE SAYS PEOPLE NEED TO REALIZE THAT IT’S THE CHILDREN WHO ARE MOST AT RISK

(SOT: 07:18:29 - 07:18:40)  Galley

They’re little bodies you know.  They can’t process the toxins out of their bodies as fast as adults.  They’re a lot closer to the ground. It’s a lot harder for kids. 

STAND –UP  (SOT: 14:42:28) Soknacki tape

 

 

NEIGHBOURHOODS FILLED WITH WEEDS THAT’S WHAT SOME RESIDENTS FEAR WILL ON THEIRS STREETS IF CITY COUNCIL PASSES A BYLAW RESTRICTING THE USE OF PESTICIDES ON PRIVATE PROPERTY.  TORONTO PUBLIC HEALTH CONDUCTED FORUMS EARLIER IN THE YEAR TO GAGE PUBLIC OPINION ON THE MATTER.  WHAT’S CONTAINED IN THAT REPORT COULD SWAY CITY COUNCILLORS TO VOTE FOR OR AGAINST THAT PROPOSAL…CHARLES MITCHELL REPORTING FOR ROGER’S TELEVISION.

 

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