Pest Control: Our Environment, Animals and You
At the time of Paul Müller's discovery of DDT's insecticidal properties, controlling mosquitoes and other insect-borne diseases was considered a critical need. Malaria and other diseases transmitted by mosquitoes were major public health concerns, particularly in tropical and subtropical regions.Rachel Carson - an American marine biologist and conservationist, who wrote the book "Silent Spring" in 1962, which raised awareness about the harmful effects of pesticides on the environment and led to a ban on DDT.Similarly, the British Columbia Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy implemented the ban in an effort to protect non-target wildlife, including endangered species such as the Northern Spotted Owl and the American Badger, which have been negatively impacted by rodenticide poisoning. The ban is also aimed at encouraging the use of alternative methods of rodent control, such as exclusion, sanitation, and trapping.