Citizen urges PM to act
on Canada's Toxic Legacy
-CAPS BULLETIN
Thursday, March 15, 2001
By Mike Christie
March 15, 2001
The Rt. Hon. Jean Chrétien, Prime Minister
Room 309-S, Centre Block
House of Commons
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0A6
RE: Toxic Legacies
Dear Prime Minister Chrétien,
Did you happen to watch the Nature of Things documentary titled
'Toxic Legacies' last night along with hundreds of thousands of other
Canadians? If you didn't, the show will repeat on March 18th at 4pm
on CBC.
I was alarmed by the underlying messages clearly illustrating the
potential health hazards that chemical pesticides pose to the young
children and pets in our communities.
| "I was further alarmed by three federal government reports... that
have all raised serious concerns about the government's ability to
ensure the safety of public health when dealing with the management
of chemical pesticides and toxic substances." |
I was further alarmed by three federal government reports, the
National Round Table on the Environment and the Economy (March 2001),
the Standing Committee On Environment and Sustainable Development
(May 2000) and the Commissioner of The Environment and Sustainable
Development, Office of the Auditor General of Canada (May 1999), that
have all raised serious concerns about the government's ability to
ensure the safety of public health when dealing with the management
of chemical pesticides and toxic substances.
I also want to help by offering some solutions that address these
issues with meaningful action aimed at restoring public confidence.
But, I also need your help to do this.
I want to help to let you know that public opinion suggests the
federal and provincial governments have lost most (if not all) their
credibility in terms of placing public health as the first priority
in their decisions on pesticides;
I want to help you to let you know that government could save a
considerable amount of time and money in trying to design a 'Healthy
Lawns' strategy by adopting Actress Jane Seymour's recently launched
'Care for Kids NOW' program on
pesticides use. It was designed by people for the people and this is
exactly what Canadians expect to see in any proposed 'Healthy Lawns'
strategy;
I want to help you to let you know that government could gain
considerable credibility in public opinion if they adopted the
principles of the 'Care for Kids NOW' program on pesticide
elimination;
|
| "...the so called 'Healthy Lawns' strategy should be first designed by
the people for the people and not by the government for the industry" |
Will you help by reminding the Pest Management Regulatory Agency
(PMRA) that they are 'public' servants first and foremost and as such
the so called 'Healthy Lawns' strategy should be first designed by
the people for the people and not by the government for the industry?;
Will you help by adopting the principals of the recently launched
'Care for Kids NOW' program that asks parents to follow the 3E's of
Pesticide Safety -- Educate, Evaluate and Eliminate. The steps are:
Educate yourself about potential pesticide threats to children.
Evaluate your home, school or child care center. Eliminate dangerous
pesticides from your child's environment and replace them with safer
alternatives as needed;
Will you help by acting on Liberal Party of Canada priority
resolution #113 which calls for an immediate moratorium on the
cosmetic use of pesticides until they are scientifically proven to be
safe, adopted at the Liberal Party Convention, on March 19, 2000?;
Will you help by making Marlene Jennings' Private members Bill C-267
a government bill so that a moratorium on the non-essential use of
chemical pesticides until proven safe can receive Royal Assent by
April 22, 2001?;
Will you help by advising the Minister of Health that his chronic
lack of leadership on the non-essential use of pesticides is SHAMEFUL
AND IRRESPONSIBLE AND THAT YOU, MR. PRIME MINISTER, WILL TAKE THE
LEAD on this critical health issue?
As David Suzuki stated last night, "No one wants to look back and
regret action not taken". Mr. Prime Minister, what kind of legacy on
pesticides do you wish to leave our children? Please respond and let
me know if you will help.
Yours sincerely,
Mike Christie
Nepean, Ontario
c.c. Hon. Charles Caccia, Chair, Standing Committee On Environment
And Sustainable Development
Joe Jordan, M.P. Leeds--Grenville, Liberal
Marlene Catterall, M.P. Ottawa West - Nepean, Liberal
Marlene Jennings, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce-Lachine, Liberal
Richard Van Loon, Chair, Pest Management Advisory Council
Akaash Maharaj, Chair, The National Standing Committee On
Policy Development, Liberal Party of Canada
Claire Franklin, Executive Director, Pest Management Regulatory Agency
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