Langley Resident' Views On Smoking Bans And Pesticide Restrictions

Vancouver, BC - A new Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of the Canadian Cancer Society finds that the majority of residents in Langley, BC (Langley includes the City of Langley and the Township of Langley) would support the provincial government or their local municipal government establishing regulations that would prohibit smoking at various public and private locations. Support for new smoking regulations is highest at stadiums (80% support), followed by parks and playgrounds (75%), bus shelters (72%), sports fields (72%), and outdoor sporting venues such as open air sports grounds or arenas (72%). The majority of residents also support smoking bans in cars or other privately owned vehicles carrying children aged 18 or younger (69%), at amusement parks and fairs (69%), at beaches (66%), and on outdoor patios of restaurants and bars (65%).

The poll also shows that nearly four-in-ten (38%) Langley residents with a lawn or garden say that they (or someone else) applied pesticides to their home lawn or garden in the past twelve months. However, a strong majority of all Langley residents (includes those with and without a lawn or garden) agree that cosmetic pesticides pose a threat to their environment (80% agree), pets (75%), children (73%), and to their own personal health (67%). (The definition of cosmetic pesticides given to respondents was "cosmetic pesticides are used to kill or control weeds, insects, fungi, and pests in order to enhance the appearance of private and public lawns and gardens".)

In line with Langley residents' attitudes towards the threat posed by cosmetic pesticides, the poll finds that three-quarters (74%) of all respondents say they are aware there may be a link between exposure to some components of pesticides and an increased risk of some types of cancer. Six-in-ten (61%) residents say that hearing about this link makes them more likely to support their local government passing a bylaw that would ban the use of cosmetic pesticides on private and public properties (38% "much more likely", 24% "somewhat more likely").

These are the findings of an Ipsos Reid telephone poll conducted on behalf of the Canadian Cancer Society and fielded between the dates of August 15 and 19, 2007. The poll is based on a randomly selected sample of 500 adult Langley residents. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate to within 177 4.4 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire adult Langley population been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were statistically weighted to ensure the sample's regional and age/sex composition reflects that of the actual Langley population according to the 2006 Census data.

For more information on this news release, please contact:
Kyle Braid
Vice President
Ipsos Reid Public Affairs
(778) 373-5130
[email protected]

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