Pesticide use has been increasing in Canada while the trend in other industrialized countries is for use to decline, the David Suzuki Foundation reported last week in a damning analysis of Canada’s environmental performance.
The report, based on statistics compiled by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, rated Canada’s overall environmental performance at 28th out of 30 OECD countries. It was the second worst performer when water consumption was the topic.
On the issue of pesticide use, Canada scored much better – eighth out of 30 – but the report said the ranking is slipping.
Read Also
First annual Ag in Motion Junior Cattle Show kicks off with a bang
Ag in Motion 2025 had its first annual junior cattle show on July 15. The show hosted more than 20…
“Between 1990 and 2002, Canada increased its kilograms of pesticides per sq. kilometre of arable land by 17.88 percent while the OECD average pesticide application rate decreased by 17 percent,” said the report.
It also said of the more than 7,000 pesticides registered for use in Canada, “over 60 … are banned by other countries due to their environmental and health impacts.”
Foundation sustainability specialist Pierre Sadik said increasing pesticide use is a red flag.
“I think Canada gets off the hook on this a bit because of the size of the country and the fact that in parts of the country the soil and climate do not allow intensive farming,” he said from the foundation’s Ottawa office.
“The fact is that on this file, other countries are worse offenders. But the fact also is that these numbers show we’re headed in the wrong direction while other countries are going in the opposite direction.”
An official at the Pest Management Regulatory Agency could not verify reports of increased pesticide use.
