Ministry of Agriculture and Lands
B.C. Pesticide Return
The B.C. Pesticide Return program provides B.C. agriculture producers the opportunity to safely dispose of their unwanted, obsolete pesticides, free of charge. Commercial and restricted pesticides from golf courses, the turf industry, landscape companies, and pest control companies are also accepted.
2009 Collection Dates and Locations:
- Peace River - August 24-28, 2009
- Dawson Creek - Viterra (250 782 9264)
- Fort St. John - Viterra (250 785 3445)
- Follow this link to the brochure (PDF) for further information
Results - 2000-2007
Since the B.C. Pesticide Return Program began in 2000, approximately 174,400 kg of pesticides have been collected from over 1155 participants at eight different collections. The total cost of this program to date, excluding in-kind contributions is $503,236.
| Collection Location / Year | No. Sites | Amount Collected | No. Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fraser Valley, 2000 | 2 | 40,040 kg | 158 |
| Vancouver Island, 2000 | 4 | 19,000 kg | 185 |
| Okanagan, 2001 | 7 | 28,910 kg | 389 |
| Peace River 2002 | 3 | 3192 kg | no data |
| Fraser Valley, 2006 | 2 | 44,000 kg | 166 |
| Okanagan, 2006 | 5 | 29,486 kg | 191 |
| Cariboo Interior, 2007 | 5 | 3,755 kg | 15+ |
| Vancouver Island, 2007 | 3 | 6,034 kg | 66 |
How the Program Works
Producers bring their unwanted pesticides to a designated site where the pesticides are safely sorted and packed by a hazardous waste disposal company, then shipped to a special hazardous waste facility in Alberta, and destroyed through high-temperature incineration. Volunteers from the sponsors survey participants about their businesses (i.e. commodities produced) and their reasons for disposing of pesticides.
- All pesticides will be accepted including those without valid Canadian Pest Control Product Act Numbers.
- For safety reasons, all pesticides must be labelled. If you no longer know what the pesticide is, label the container "Pesticide Unknown".
- Bring the pesticides in leak proof containers. If a container is leaking, put the container in another leak proof container before bringing it to a collection site.
- The collection is only for pesticides. Products such as antifreeze, solvents, paints, treated seed, veterinary drugs, sulphuric acid, fertilizers or empty pesticide containers will not be accepted.
BC Pesticide Return is coordinated through the BC Agricultural Council. The Return is sponsored by CropLife Canada and federal and provincial government agencies. BC Pesticide Return is a component of the CropLife Canada's Stewardship First program that supports the safe and responsible use of crop protection products through their entire life cycle, extending from the manufacturing stage to ultimate disposal.
This project is sponsored by:
- CropLife Canada
- Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada
- BC Ministry of Environment
- Environment Canada
- BC Ministry of Agriculture and Lands
- BC Agriculture Council
- Investment Agriculture Foundation of BC
- Health Canada
- Pest Management Regulatory Agency
