John Matthews
WMAL.com
(Montgomery County, MD) — Two schools of thought are developing as debate over a potential ban on pesticides for residential use continues in Montgomery County.
Council President George Leventhal, who is leading the push for the ban, said at a council committee hearing Monday that opposition from farmers and the threat of a lawsuit if the ban becomes law should not stop lawmakers from moving forward to protect residents who are currently being exposed to potentially dangerous chemicals.
Leventhal insists his legislation does not apply to farmers, and he says an opinion letter from the state attorney general’s office that argues a county ban would likely be preempted by the state’s pesticide laws is not an excuse to stop moving forward with a ban.
He continued that a ban would likewise not cause dissention in communities.
“There would not be neighbors ratting on neighbors; there would not be lawn police terrorizing neighborhoods,” Leventhal said. “I don’t think any of that would occur and I think that over the passage of time, it would become an accepted practice that homeowners do not use chemicals that place their own children or their own pets at risk.”
But Roger Berliner, who chairs the council’s Transportation and Environment Committee, says Leventhal wants to move too quickly.
Berliner noted that the county has never moved to ban pesticides in the past, and that a full-speed ban now without informing the public and without considering interim compromises is simply “a bridge too far.” Berliner says the county can still craft a strong police on pesticides that does not go as far as Leventhal is proposing.
“Our experts say the science is inconclusive. Our attorney general has said it’s likely to be preempted. Our existing regulations have never been enforced. Our public does not have an understanding of this issue and we have not given them an opportunity to catch up,” Berliner said.
The council did not take action on the legislation at Monday’s meeting. The first vote is not expected until at least September.
Under the current version of the bill, agriculture and golf courses would be exempt from the law. The Montgomery County Department of Parks is also requesting exemption.
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