Mr. Speaker, I present a petition on behalf of many constituents in my region concerned about the use of glyphosate in Canadian forests.
Glyphosate in Canada is the most widely sold pesticide. It is used in agriculture as a herbicide to kill crops for harvest and in forestry to kill unwanted target trees and vegetation and as a herbicide on rights-of-way. The result is that residents in Canada, including infants and children, consume glyphosate residues in their food and water and are exposed to it while outdoors for recreational and occupational activities, hunting and harvesting.
The use of glyphosate harms aquatic and terrestrial species and causes loss of biodiversity, thereby making ecosystems more vulnerable to pollution. It endangers pollinators, including wild bees and monarch butterflies, and exacerbates wildfires since conifer-only forests burn faster and hotter than mixed forests. In 2015, the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer classified glyphosate as a probable carcinogen to humans—