Halifax implemented a pesticide ban, and now they're overrun by fire ants.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/nova-scotia/story/2008/07/11/fire-ant.html

someone told me that if you boil rubbarb leaves and use the juice it will kill ants. Havn't tried it so don't know if it works. There are natural ways to control most pests. [send them to grama]

Cornmeal. They eat the corn meal, but they can not poop it out. because they can not digest, just like us, so it bungs them up.

I agree with a total ban. To risk our lives to have weed free properties is crazy. There are natural ways to look after incects. Let's use some common sense on this.

I think you're confusing the issue opion1. Pesticides aren't for weeds.

Sure ban the pesticides, watering and anything else to make the city look crappier than it already is.

Wolfie, a weed is a pest therefor categorized under pesticide which includes herbicides.

Hotel tax, eh? Let me guess. After the clerk totals the cost of your room at the inn, he will then add the HST after including the Hotel tax. Kinda like buying tires and or a battery. Add the sales tax on the total which includes the environmental fee. Taxes being taxed. Only in Canada.

Why not use pesticides? Used in a controlled manner they are safe. Lets see some real science that they are dangerous instead of emotion and hearsay. If there is a ban base it on fact.

Anything spilled on the ground that does not evaporate gets washed into our watershed.
not only do we use water for drinking a cooking, but also to carry away human waste.
Think about it, you are drinking what somebody pooped into and washed their car with and after some treatment, it is consumed by humans.

Do you really want to object to a ban of deadly chemicals that are getting into our water?

I think the hotel tax will end up driving some room business away, which will have a ripple effect on restaurants, gas stations etc. As for pesticides, I don't think we should be using them for 'cosmetic' reasons either.
metalman.

I doubt 2% will make much a difference in terms of 'driving business away'. If they actually put the 2% to what they say they will -- tourism and promotion, then I don't have a problem with it.

2%, eh??? WOW!!!!!!! Let's let the rest of the world know that our taqxes are ONLY 2% and people will flock here.....

http://www.allbusiness.com/travel-hospitality-tourism/lodging-lodging-industry/12570121-1.html

Hotel taxes, car rental fees and other charges were jacked up in many states in an effort to balance budgets by last week (July 2009), when the fiscal year started in 46 states.

Popular tourist destinations were hit especially hard. Among places where taxes rose:

- Hawaii. The hotel room tax increased from 7.25 percent to 8.25 percent on Wednesday and will rise to 9.25 percent in July 2010.

- Nevada. The room tax will increase up to 3 percentage points, to a maximum of 12 percent. In Las Vegas, the hotel tax jumps from 9 percent to 12 percent . Reno's tax was already 12 percent and is not scheduled to change.

- New Hampshire. The tax on rooms and restaurant meals rose from 8 percent to 9 percent and was extended to include recreational vehicles at campgrounds.

- Massachusetts. Cities were given authority to raise the hotel tax from 4 percent to 6 percent, in addition to the state tax of 5.7 percent. Taxes on eating out will rise from 5 percent to 6.25 percent statewide, plus another 0.75 percent if cities choose.

- New York City. The city, which raised its hotel tax March 1 to 14.25 percent , not counting other fees, will start charging more for Internet reservations.

"You couldn't pick a worse time to make it more expensive to rent a hotel room," says Mark Woodworth, executive vice president of PKF Hospitality Research in Atlanta. Hotel occupancy this year will be at its lowest level - 55.5 percent - since his company started keeping track in 1936, Woodworth says.

..... Room taxes generated $14 billion in 2008, the American Hotel & Lodging Association reports. That amount is expected to fall in 2009, even with higher tax rates.

Car rental fees are rising, too. A new 5 percent tax at the Newark airport will fund economic development. Wisconsin approved hiking the car rental fee in Milwaukee from $2 to $18 to subsidize mass transit.

Adding an $18 fee to a car rental is outrageous, says Caleb Miller of the National Business Travel Association. "In what other context can you charge a 50 percent tax rate and get away with it?" he says.

He says businesses are very sensitive to travel costs in this recession and higher taxes hurt local businesses, not just visitors from out of town. "It's not the whole story to think, 'We tax someone from out of town. What's the big deal?' "

Most travel tax hikes ran into light opposition this year. The Nevada Hotel and Lodging Association didn't oppose the state's hotel tax hike aimed at generating $100 million a year. "We support education," says Van Heffner, the association's president. "What could we do? We stayed neutral."

WELCOME TOURISTS AND LET THEM ENJOY OUR VERY LOW RATE!!!!!!! :-)

the 2 percent is in addition to the 8 percent we already pay

Yes, we will be paying 10% along with most other cities in the province of our size or larger.

The interesting thing will be to see what happens when the HST is brought in. Will the hotel guest then be paying:

5% GST + 7%PST = 12% HST
plus
8% prov + 2% city = 10% room tax

Which would make a $100 room cost at least $122 depending on whether the taxes are cumulative or not.