Awareness, Support, and Perceived Impact of the Connecticut Pesticide Ban

Abstract

<jats:p>Concern over the use of pesticides in public areas, such as schools, daycare centers, and parks, has prompted some state and local governments to severely restrict or ban pesticides in these locations. Connecticut currently has bans for daycare centers, school grounds with kindergarten through eighth grade classes, and playgrounds in municipal parks. This study was designed to understand general public awareness of these bans and the public sentiment for these additional bans. An online survey was conducted in late 2016 asking Connecticut residents about their levels of awareness of the current pesticide bans, and whether they supported the current ban or would support additional bans. Demographics and other individual characteristics/perceptions are used to explain whether a respondent knows there is a pesticide ban and if the respondent thinks there should be a pesticide ban. Only 7% of the respondents could correctly identify where pesticide bans are currently in place, with most respondents being unsure (74%) if a ban was, in fact, in place. No respondents correctly identified the location of the ban without also identifying an incorrect location as well. A large percentage of respondents indicated the state should have a pesticide ban, with those respondents supporting a ban across all locations listed. Pesticide bans on school grounds and athletic fields from kindergarten to 12th grade were strongly supported, with scores ranging from 85.9 to 86.6 on a 100-point scale, with 100 representing extreme support for pesticide bans. The results indicate that general awareness of the current pesticide ban, as well as knowledge of where current bans are in place, is low. Most respondents support a statewide ban that exceeds current Connecticut law.</jats:p>

Advances in turfgrass weed management

“…Due to public concern over pesticide exposure, governments and other policymakers have severely restricted or banned pesticide use on school grounds and public areas in North America (Campbell and Wallace, 2020). Quebec, Canada, passed the Pest Control Products Act in 2003 that resulted in the ban on selling pesticides for use in lawns, including the herbicide 2,4-D (Conlin, 2008).…”

Optimal fine fescue mixture seeding dates in the northern United States

“…Further research to identify postemergence herbi-cides that provide optimum safety on fine fescue seedlings would improve the success rate of spring plantings. However, reliance on herbicide use at or after seeding can be challenging or not option, such as in regions with pesticide bans (Bachand & Gue, 2011;Barzman, & Dachbrodt-Saaydeh, 2011;Campbell & Wallace, 2020;Hahn et al, 2020). There may be a greater chance of success when seeding in the spring if the fine fescue seed mixture contains more F. rubra taxa than F. ovina, because of the better crabgrass suppression abilities observed in F. rubra taxa (Breuillin-Sessoms et al, 2021).…”