Last week, the Municipal District of Opportunity held a community meeting in Calling Lake. They brought in representatives from Alberta Agriculture and Forestry to speak about the forests in that area.
One representative said the Alberta government has determined that herbicide is an “appropriate tool to use in forest management.”
“The decision to use herbicide is a company’s decision,” said provincial silviculture specialist Andrew Shandro.
It is — well, sort of.
This land is our land. We can tell our governments how we want it to be used or not used. Our governments can also make rules about what chemicals are and are not banned.
The people of Calling Lake have every right to say what happens around them, especially when it comes to chemicals that have a history of harm.
Like glyphosate. Monsanto lost a lawsuit in the United States related to this product, also known as Roundup. According to the Guardian newspaper, they were ordered to pay US$289 million to a man dying of non-Hodgkin lymphoma after a jury decided the weedkiller caused the man’s cancer and the corporation failed to warn him of the health hazards from exposure.
If a forestry company here in Alberta is going to use this herbicide or any other — like triclopyr or imazapyr — they have to ask.
So while the government says it is “a company’s decision” to use herbicide, in the end, it is the people of Alberta who are the ones allowing it to be used.
Public and Indigenous consultations are a part of that process. We would encourage everyone to start getting involved in that process.
We would also encourage people, if this is something they are worried about, to bring their concerns higher.
There is a moratorium on herbicide use in Quebec with respect to forest management.
Alberta doesn’t have to stick with the status quo, either, if people stand up and say it isn’t enough for them.
