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National Observer

Help us raise $150K by May 22 to expose dangerous pesticide policies

As the election drew to a close last month, a source drew my attention to a Liberal pledge on pesticides that could increase use of the toxic chemicals. Buried in the party's election platform was a promise that, if elected, the party will tell Canada's pesticide regulator to start considering food costs and food security when deciding whether to approve new pesticides or not. The pledge wasn't entirely surprising: food prices have soared since 2021, exacerbating Canada's cost-of-living crisis and driving millions of Canadians to rely on food banks. Meanwhile, Trump's trade war and Canadians' renewed patriotism spooked people's faith in Canada's ability to feed itself without the US. Measures that claim to tackle both problems are an easy sell. This is precisely why we've launched our $150,000 spring fundraiser to fund the Climate Solutions Reporting Project until May 22nd – because tracking these kinds of environmental policy shifts requires sustained, investigative journalism that looks beyond the headlines. For me, the promise raised some major red flags. Over the past two years, I've written a series of investigations revealing major transparency and integrity problems with Canada's pesticide regulator. My stories have exposed how the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) helped pesticide giant Bayer keep bee-killing pesticides on the market and undermine data collected by Christy Morrissey, a University of Saskatchewan professor. They've revealed how the agency overlooked health data in approving chlorpyrifos, a pesticide related to the toxic nerve gas sarin, and made those data nearly impossible for the public to see. And they've highlighted deep transparency problems within the PMRA that experts say protect pesticide companies, not people. All those problems arose when the PMRA could only approve pesticides if the agency determined they were safe for human health and the environment. Ask the agency to consider if restricting pesticides will increase food prices — a message industry groups commonly cite to push for looser environmental and health rules — and who knows what will happen. The election is over. Now it's time to keep the new government accountable, including keeping a close eye on how it will impact the environment and Canadians' health. The first few months of a new government are critical: relatively protected by novelty, this is a time when the government can implement key policies and lobbyists can forge key relationships with elected officials and civil servants. But we need your help. For a decade, Canada's National Observer has revealed what's really happening – exposing greenwashing, sparking policy change, and delivering the truth about our climate and environmental future. As climate facts are erased and disinformation flourishes, our democracy faces a critical threat. , allowing us to investigate not just problems like pesticide regulation, but also the innovative approaches that can lead us toward a healthier, more sustainable future.