UA News

The UA is helping to take Integrated Pest Management model nationally.

University of Arizona researchers are making a major contribution in the effort to reduce exposure to pesticides in K-12 schools across the country – and have already seen the effects in schools throughout Maricopa County.

Dawn Gouge, associate professor of entomology at the UA's Maricopa Agricultural Center, was one of the authors of an Integrated Pest Management plan developed in collaboration with the U.S. Department of Agriculture Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service; regional Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Centers; the Environmental Protection Agency; and the IPM Institute of North America.

The plan, "School IPM 2015: A Strategic Plan for Integrated Pest Management in Schools in the United States," calls for a 70 percent reduction in pest complaints and pesticide use in schools. It also presents action steps and a timeline for a coordinated effort to engage professionals in all walks of school life – including parents, teachers, custodians, food service staff, school administrators, pest management professionals, extension staff, regulators and architects.

Arizona schools were among the first in the country to establish verified Integrated Pest Management practices.

In 2000, Gouge and other entomologists begin working with Arizona school districts, primarily in Maricopa County, to develop Integrated Pest Management, or IPM, programs. The goal behind IPM is to avoid reliance on chemical pesticides but rather solve the fundamental reasons that pests become a problem.

Strategies include effective sanitation, education, facility and, when necessary, pesticidal applications.

"Several school districts are doing exemplary work, including Scottsdale Unified, Kyrene, Paradise Valley, Washington Elementary and Mesa Public Schools," said Gouge.

Gouge and other nationally renowned entomologists developed working groups with school district personnel, state agencies and industry partners, where they provided training, conducted workshops and offered expertise in battling pests ranging from cockroaches to roof rats to bats.

The UA even established a hotline for individuals and school representatives to call and ask about pesticides, options on how to deal with specific pests or other issues related to IPM.

"IPM is a real fix, not a band-aid. It is a strategic approach to actually solving the problem."

There is an initial up-front cost for using IPM, specifically for training and remediation of school buildings. "Once you get past that point, there is an actual cost savings, because you are fundamentally fixing the reason these pests are a problem," said Gouge.

Lack of funding has prevented the program from becoming more widespread in Arizona schools, and Gouge is hopeful that the IPM strategic plan will contribute to a grassroots effort to implement IPM in schools nationwide, and possibly in other facilities.

The "School IPM 2015" plan brings together, "the very best management practices for each individual problem that may occur in a school system," said Gouge. "The approaches can be applied in a school environment can be applied in a hospital or a child care facility."

While IPM has proven effective in batting all kinds of pests, and is more cost efficient in the long term than traditional spraying, Gouge sees the children's health benefits as being the most compelling reason to integrate IPM nationally.

"Pest management in schools is a children's environmental health issue," said Gouge. "When you talk about asthma and indoor air quality you get everyone's attention and they all know this is pretty serious stuff. Pest management is part of all that."

"Poor pest management and the use of pesticides can affect students' learning abilities and long-term health, especially asthma, which is the number one cause of school absences," said Colien Hefferan, USDA Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service administrator. "IPM schools have less pesticide residue, fewer pest problems and lower pest-related allergens. Best practices are essential to improving attendance and performance."

Gouge is hoping to see this national IPM initiative will infuse knowledge and expertise into school systems nationwide, which will ultimately result in a dramatic reduction in both pesticide usage and pest exposure.

"Pesticides are an intentional pollutant. If we don't need them, why apply them."