Pesticide legislation confuses Islanders

Three years after P.E.I. brought in prohibitions against the use of certain cosmetic pesticides many Islanders still don't understand what is and isn't legal.

Every day the Environment Department receives about a dozen complaints about pesticide use on lawns, Wade MacKinnon, manager of investigation and enforcement for the department, told CBC News.

Many of those reports, however, areabout the legal use of pesticides.

"A lot of the calls that we do field now is that the public believes there is a total ban on lawn care pesticides," said MacKinnon.

"A lot of products have been banned but there's not a total ban. Some products are still registered by the Department of Health in Ottawa."

P.E.I.'s regulations ban the use of products containing the chemical 2,4-D except on golf courses. They also prevent homeowners from using products in granulated or concentrated form.

MacKinnon said his division is adding a third pesticide enforcement officer to help deal with the volume of calls.

For mobile device users:What should the P.E.I. government do about the confusion over cosmetic pesticide regulations?