The city of Waterloo has been practicing pesticide free sportsfields for the past ten years. Therefore, the recent cosmetic pesticide ban in Ontario has not played a part in their operation at all. City of Waterloo sports field supervisor and manager Trevor Hunter says: ” It is just something we have done and have learned to deal with.” Running a sportsfield operation is not the easiest thing to do. This type of operation requires continuous attention to the fields, and a lot more cultural practices that consist of aerification, vertical cutting, over seeding, and even top dressing.
Not only has Trevor Hunter made all of the sportsfields pesticide free for a long period of time, he has also taken on some of his own practices as well. While working with the city to rotate soccer games he will seed the goal mounds where there seems to be the most wear and tear of turf, he then places a large tarp over the new seed for two weeks to allow the seed to germinate with no disruption. He also states that there will be some weeds on his fields but that is something that he has learned to tolerate over his years as a manager and he says the people using the fields tolerate it or don’t even notice it anymore.
After running a pesticide free operation for the past decade, the city of Waterloo has saved a lot of money on pesticides and have contributed to a healthier surrounding in their city. While other cities and sportsfield managers are struggling with the pesticide ban, Trevor and his staff are just going amongst their day to day jobs the same way they always have.
