Here's a brief news item that might interest organic gardeners:

The Future for Pesticides? Stanton Gill

I was at the Ohio Floriculture Association Short Course in Columbus, Ohio last week and I had some time to spend with some of the Canadians attending the meetings. They told me that some of the Canadian provinces just passed very restrictive laws on chemical pesticides use in home landscapes. In the United States we call this use of pesticides on "ornamental plants". In Ontario they refer to this as use of pesticides on "cosmetic plants." The interesting part is that golf courses are exempt if they use IPM practices. I logged onto an Ontario newspaper to see the reactions and they were interesting. Many of the homeowners sent in comments on the new law and were outraged at the restrictions and many commented that they anticipated a weed outbreak in city landscapes. The weed killer 2-4-D is banned in two provinces, even though it has been deemed safe by Health Canada which could put Ontario in the legal crosshairs of an international trade
dispute. Dow AgroSciences, which makes 2-4-D, is challenging Quebec's ban under the North American Free Trade Agreement.
Will this be the future in the USA? Good question. Here is a summary of what was put in place this spring in Ontario: On April 22, 2009, Ontario became the second Canadian province to ban the sale and use of cosmetic pesticides. Highlights of the comprehensive Cosmetic Pesticides Ban Act, 2008 and Ontario Regulation 63/09 include:

• The provincial ban overrides local municipal pesticides bylaws and creates one set of rules across the province.
• Pesticides cannot be used for cosmetic purposes on lawns, vegetable and ornamental gardens, patios, driveways, cemeteries, and in parks and school yards. There are no exceptions for pest infestations from insects, fungi or weeds as lower risk pesticides, biopesticides and other
alternatives exist.
• More than 250 pesticide products cannot be sold and over 95 ingredients cannot be used. This includes Weedout and Killex herbicides, Later's outdoor insecticides and Weed N Feed
herbicide/fertilizer mixtures of 2,4-D, Dicamba and MCPP.
• Pesticides with the active ingredients Glyphosate and Glufosinate (in Roundup and Wipeout herbicides) are generally prohibited, but can be used to control plants that are poisonous to touch (poison ivy). This is an interesting restriction and they are not sure how this will be enforced. Eleven pesticide classes have been established:
• Class 1: Manufacturing concentrates used to make a pesticide product.
Classes 2, 3 and 4: Commercial or restricted pesticides that farmers and licensed exterminators can
continue to use for non-banned uses. If the pesticide contains a Class 9 pesticide, it may only be
used for an exception to the ban (e.g. agriculture, forestry, golf courses).
Classes 5 and 6: Acceptable biopesticides and lower risk pesticides can be used for residential