Despite local opposition to the CN Rail spraying herbicides along the railroad tracks here in Squamish and within the Sea to Sky Corridor, spraying will continue as scheduled in the coming months.
And the situation continues to aggravate local environmentalists.
"Another year of herbicide spraying without any public notification beforehand is upon us in the Squamish Valley and beyond," said Squamish Valley conservationist John Buchanan.
Although environmentalists contend the spraying of toxic substances are unhealthy, CN representatives say it's actually done to keep people safe.
"This is all about is safety. If we leave vegetation to grow on our right of way, that poses a potential threat, which is why we do not tolerate it," said CN spokesperson Jim Feeny in previous years when asked about the spraying procedure.
In the past, Squamish council has made their disapproval known by "strongly requesting" CN use alternative methods of vegetation control in their five-year pest management plan.
Squamish made similar waves several years before when BC Rail's pest management plan came under attack. The district was able to get some concessions, such as "no-go zones" around waterways, but those methods were not adopted by CN.
Unlike previous years, this time, CN will be advising the public beforehand.
"The vegetation control plan will be advertised in the newspapers once it is finalized," was the only comment Kelli Svendson, senior manager for CN public and government affairs would make.
The plan extends to May 31, 2011 and uses both mechanical and chemical methods to control vegetation on tracks, rights-of-ways, crossings, station grounds, yards and buildings throughout the province.
Buchanan said he hoped this year might be different thanks to a new environmentally friendly herbicide.
"Seemingly good bit of news out of University of Victoria yesterday as an alternative to herbicide is found," he said.
The product called Chontrol uses a naturally-occurring fungus as an inexpensive and environmentally safe alternative to traditional forms of chemical weed control. UVic biologist Dr. Will Hintz developed the unique biological herbicide for the management of woody forest vegetation in North America.
"We felt the need to create an alternative to chemical herbicides and go one step further - to develop a natural product with a wider field application and reduced environmental impact, " says Hintz.
According to Paul de la Bastide, who has worked with Hintz on the development of the product for the past 10 years, Chontrol can keep right-of-ways clear without the risk of affecting wildlife or contaminating nearby streams and rivers. The technology is the only biopesticide product currently on the market for forest vegetation management.
It is registered in Canada and the United States in the commercial products category, meaning only vegetation management companies and not individuals can use it.
De la Bastide said Chontrol is ideal for BC Hydro, forestry companies or potentially railways, but it is only effective against deciduous trees such as alder, maple, aspen and poplar. It's not effective against grasses and herbaceous plants.
"This is likely why no railway lines have actually been using it yet," said de la Bastide.
"It seems their main priority is to keep the rail bed clean and usually in that location a herbaceous plant is the biggest problem.
"But as you move away from the rail bed there's a right-of-way of about 15 to 20 feet on each side where you do have some tree species, specifically for visibility around railroad crossings. This could potentially be a target for this kind of product."
De la Bastide said railways are an ongoing problem because the tracks have to be clear for safety reasons and at the moment there's not a lot product choices for them.
"Some have used steam treatments but that's not effective against all plant species."
Chontrol is in its first year of sales and will be used for the first time commercially this spring.
"We have a bit more promotion to do and people to talk to," said de la Bastide.
Their largest amount of support has come from BC Hydro to clear their hydroelectric right-of-ways thought they've started getting more interest from municipalities interested in moving away from chemical herbicides.
When asked whether the team at UVic was looking into creating a new product that would be effective against herbaceous plants and grasses, he said it could be a possibility in the future.
"We've thought about it but haven't had a lot of time to put effort into it yet," he said. "These types of projects take from 10 to 15 years to get from idea to a product we can sell."
