The case for banning chemical herbicides in forestry in Ontario

Letter by Joel Theriault, Stop the Spray Ontario
The Timmins Daily Press
September 24, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada East

ONTARIO — On September 10, 2024 approximately 600 liters of concentrated glyphosate chemical herbicides were spilled near the Temagami First Nation due to a forestry tanker truck accident. This event has intensified an already heated debate surrounding the use of chemical herbicides by Ontario’s forestry sector, highlighting their potential dangers to ecosystems, wildlife, and public health. The financial motivations for their use ignore the long-term repercussions on human health, wildlife populations, and ecological stability. The real costs, such as rising cancer rates, declining moose populations, and environmental degradation, are completely externalized, falling on taxpayers rather than the companies profiting from these practices. …As the Ontario legislature prepares to address this issue, the hope is that this disaster will prompt a reassessment of current practices. The spill serves as a critical reminder of the environmental and social injustices associated with chemical herbicides.

Read More