The April Pests and Progress webinar featured Ryan Anderson, Sustainable Communities Manager at the IPM Institute of North America.
The IPM Institute has many programs it supports. Anderson focused on two of them, which both have a sustainable community theme focused on urban IPM challenges: Lawn and Land Forum and Pest Defense for Healthy Schools.
According to the EPA 2017 report about pesticide applications, more than three times as much herbicide is used per acre in lawn and garden areas compared to agricultural spaces. The Lawn and Land Forum program seeks to inspire citizens and landscape managers to adopt landscape management strategies that reduce runoff into our waterways, protect the health of our most vulnerable citizens, and reduce negative impacts of pesticides on non-target species, such as pollinators. The Lawn and Land Forum provides training and resources to support sustainable management of recreational spaces and natural areas. The Lawn and Land Forum also provides an opportunity for green spaces, from football fields to golf courses, to be “Green Shield Certified,” which proves that they have taken approved steps to manage the green space sustainably.
The Pest Defense for Healthy Schools (or School IPM) program seeks to help schools develop effective IPM programs for managing their spaces. The hope is that this will also reduce the occurrence of asthma-induced hospitalizations and absences among K-12 school children by reducing triggers of pests and pesticides. The IPM for Schools Working Group has produced a set of free online training modules targeted to school staff positions, from maintenance workers to school nurses to school cafeteria workers. The School IPM Working Group also has a monthly newsletter.
In addition to these training modules, the IPM for Schools program is developing a fact sheet about the pesticide reduction policies and laws being developed in state and/or schools in the North Central region. The IPM for Schools program is also working to create pest defense workshops for students K-12. The goal is to help children learn about these important issues but also to allow schools to dedicate budget dollars to IPM, which is difficult when it has to come from a low maintenance budget.
