By Bloomberg News, Sudbury Star wire service
The City of Greater Sudbury is the first community in Ontario to ban commercial fertilizers containing phosphorus.
Following a 90-minute discussion, council unanimously supported a bylaw brought to the city by the Greater Sudbury Watershed Alliance.
When in effect in April 2012, the bylaw will ban outright the application of any fertilizer containing phosphorus, except for agricultural use, golf courses and newly laid grass seed or sod.
The bylaw will also restrict all commercial fertilizer use, whether they contain phosphorus or not. For example, applying fertilizers on frozen ground, during or just prior to rain or on driveways and pavement would be forbidden.
“These are common-sense restrictions,” Stephen Monet, the city’s director of environmental planning, said. “These fertilizers don’t need to be there and they are not to be used in this way.”
In introducing the bylaw, Monet made clear chemical lawn fertilizers are not the primary source of phosphorus loading in area lakes and the ban is but a small piece of a large and complex puzzle.
Indeed, in grudgingly recommending the bylaw, he predicted it would not help reduce phosphorus loading in area lakes. It would be virtually unenforcable, anyway. But it would signal the city’s intent to protect lake water quality and send a message that it’s a community- wide responsibility that doesn’t end with restricting fertilizer use.
Monet reiterated this is a grassroots issue, not a corporate or legal one. Fighting bluegreen algae and other threats to area lakes is the responsibility of citizens and homeowners and the decisions they make daily.
Monet pointed to a number of other pieces to the water-quality puzzle not addressed in the proposed bylaw:
- Research shows the benefits of a 15-metre shoreline buffer for all waterfront properties, where there is no landscaping or chemical treatments at all. If it’s already grass, it should just be left to grow and allow other species to invade, Monet said.
- Septic systems in watersheds need to be maintained to exacting standards. No one knows how many older septic systems aren’t performing to acceptible standards.
- Research shows construction sites are the largest contributor of chemicals loaded into lakes. These sites need to be monitored and studied.
Councillors agreed with the ideas and added their own.
Ward 12 Coun. Joscelyne Landry-Altmann said the city should do everything possible to encourage residents to get their soil tested to see if fertilizers are even needed. It would cost about $35, plus the cost of shipping the sample to Guelph.
Possibilities include offering subsidies, running clinics and partnering with other groups, such as Laurentian University’s Living With Lakes Centre, to educate residents on the use of fertilizers.
Before approving a bylaw, councillors first voted to ensure it is widely publicized in Ontario and eliminated a provision for staff to retain outside legal counsel to investigate jurisdictional issues.
Effective or not, the bylaw signals a positive change in attitudes and behaviours in the community, Ward 2 Coun. Jacques Barbeau said.
“When people manicured their lawns right down to the lake, no one knew any better,” he said.
“But today, we do and this issue has brought all this information forward.”
mwhitehouse@thesudburystar.com