Pest Management Plans

The province’s Pesticide Control Act sets out circumstances under which government approval will be required for pesticide use.  Pesticide use can be approved in a variety of ways (see the Guide Page on the Pesticide Control Act for more information), including through Pest Management Plans (PMP).  The current government attends to amend the provincial legislation to make Pest Management Plans the most common type of authorization for pesticide use and to set new rules for their development. 

The Pesticide Control Act currently requires some form of government approval (which could be a Pest Management Plan) before pesticides can be used:

·         on public land;

·         to a body of water (other than a man-made, self-contained water body on private land);

·         on private land used for forestry, transportation, public utility purposes or for the commercial transmission of electricity, natural gas, oil or water.

Pest Management Plans are developed by the person who intends to carry out the pesticide use, and are usually used in situations where some flexibility in pesticide use over a large area is required.  Most forest companies managing crown lands, for example, use Pest Management Plans. 

Currently Pest Management Plans are intended to demonstrate how pesticides are used in the context of “Integrated Pest Management.”  Integrated Pest Management is an approach to managing pests that includes pesticide use as only one of a range of more integrated tools.  The Act defines Integrated Pest Management as:

a decision making process that uses a combination of techniques to suppress pests … [including] the following elements:

·         planning and managing ecosystems to prevent organisms from becoming pests;

·         identifying potential pest problems;

·         monitoring populations of pests and beneficial organisms, pest damage and environmental conditions;

·         using injury thresholds in making treatment decisions;

·         reducing pest populations to acceptable levels using strategies that may include a combination of biological, physical, cultural, mechanical, behavioural and chemical controls;

·         evaluating the effectiveness of treatments.

Unfortunately, the existing Pesticide Control Act does not provide much more information about what should be in a Pest Management Plan, and environmental groups have the plans usually give pesticide users a wide range of discretion about how to handle pesticides.  Critics still feel that the vagueness of PMPs often jeopardizes environmental and public health goals.  There does not appear to be any evidence as to whether the philosophical commitment to Integrated Pest Management has actually resulted in a reduction in the use of pesticides. 

PMPs must be developed in accordance with the policies of the Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection.  These policies include:

·         PMPs may be authorized for a maximum period of 5 years.

·         Requirements for the level of information and detail to be included in a PMP; and

·         Requirements around public notice and consultation.  A consultation report must be submitted to the Ministry when the PMP is submitted for approval. 

A proposed Integrated Pest Management Act will remove the requirement of government approval for PMPs that are developed in accordance with certain standards.  Environmental organizations are concerned that this will further diminish the level of information available to the public

Related Guide Pages:

·         Pesticide Control Act

For more information about Pest Management Plans:

·         Integrated Pest Management Program of the Minister of Water Land and Air Protection, and especially the Ministry’s Guide for Developing A Pest Management Plan For Forest Vegetation.