Municipal bylaw to reduce cosmetic/non-essential pesticide use on household lawns - a policy implementation evaluation

Environmental Health

Research

Jessica Leah¹  Donald C Cole¹  Susitha Wanigaratne¹  Rich Whate²  Carol Mee²  Loren Vanderlinden³  Monica Campbell³  Monica Bienefeld⁴ 

[1] Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Health Sciences Building, Ste 400, 155 College St, M5T 3M7, Toronto, ON, Canada;Healthy Public Policy, Toronto Public Health, City of Toronto, 277 Victoria Street, 7th Floor, M5B 1W2, Toronto, Ontario, Canada;Healthy Public Policy, Toronto Public Health, City of Toronto, 277 Victoria Street, 7th Floor, M5B 1W2, Toronto, Ontario, Canada;Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Health Sciences Building, Ste 400, 155 College St, M5T 3M7, Toronto, ON, Canada;Public Health Policy and Programs Branch, Ontario Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care, 075 Bay Street, 11th Floor, M5S 2B1, Toronto, ON, Canada;

关键词: Community Garden;    Lawn Care;    Multivariable Logistic Model;    Household Pesticide;    Municipal Initiative;   

DOI  :  10.1186/1476-069X-10-74

 received in 2010-11-05, accepted in 2011-08-25,  发布年份 2011

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundPesticide use on urban lawns and gardens contributes to environmental contamination and human exposure. Municipal policies to restrict use and educate households on viable alternatives deserve study. We describe the development and implementation of a cosmetic/non-essential pesticide bylaw by a municipal health department in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and assess changes in resident practices associated with bylaw implementation.MethodsImplementation indicators built on a logic model and were elaborated through key informant interviews. Bylaw impacts on awareness and practice changes were documented through telephone surveys administered seasonally pre, during and post implementation (2003-2008). Multivariable logistic regression models assessed associations of demographic variables and gardening season with respondent awareness and practices.ResultsImplementation indicators documented multiple municipal health department activities and public involvement in complaints from commencement of the educational phase. During the enforcement phases only 40 warning letters and 7 convictions were needed. The number of lawn care companies increased. Among survey respondents, awareness of the bylaw and the Natural Lawn campaign reached 69% and 76% respectively by 2008. Substantial decreases in the proportion of households applying pesticides (25 to 11%) or hiring lawn care companies for application (15 to 5%) occurred. Parallel absolute increases in use of natural lawn care methods occurred among households themselves (21%) and companies they contracted (7%).ConclusionsBylaws or ordinances implemented through education and enforcement are a viable policy option for reducing urban cosmetic pesticide use.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© Cole et al; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2011