March 31, 2003
Pest Management
Issues in Urban Settings Discussed
UNIVERSITY PARK, PA - Pests
and pesticide use in schools and other urban dwellings can result in
unhealthy indoor environments, especially among those with asthma. Can
these situations be alleviated by the use of Integrated Pest Management (IPM)
and if so, what strategies exist for IPM education and
implementation?
These questions were presented
and discussed recently at a meeting of community, agency, non-profit and
university members in Philadelphia, PA. IPM aims to manage pests -- such
as insects, diseases, weeds and animals -- by combining physical,
biological and chemical tactics that are safe and environmentally
compatible. Hosted by the Penn State Cooperative Extension in
Philadelphia, the meeting was initiated and organized by Teresina Bailey,
the Community IPM Outreach Coordinator for the Pennsylvania IPM Program.
"The purpose of the meeting was to gather together people interested
in learning and sharing more on these subjects, inform each other about
our school, youth education, health and/or community programs, and
identify ways in which we might collaborate in areas of common concern. We
are continuously finding local groups whose missions and activities can
contribute to this effort," says Bailey. Participants included people
involved in education, policy and outreach from EPA Region III, Clean Air
Council, PA Department of Environmental Protection, Delaware Valley
EarthForce, PA Department of Agriculture, Pittsburgh Area School District,
American Lung Association, Philadelphia Department of Health, Philadelphia
Zoo, Cobbs Creek Environmental Center, Holly Garden and Literary
Association, the Academy of Natural Sciences and Cooperative Extension
youth programmers.
During this introductory
meeting, participants shared information about their programs, received
updates on regulations and resources on IPM implementation in PA schools,
as well as an overview of IPM curriculum and the Academic Standards in
Environment and Ecology. In Pennsylvania, two new legislative initiatives
in Pennsylvania are encouraging IPM in schools:
1) IPM is now required to be
taught K-12 as part of the new PA Academic Standards in Environment and
Ecology. This creates an opportunity for combining IPM education and
implementation using service-learning models.
2) IPM is now required to
manage pests on Pennsylvania school property. This creates opportunities
to partner with schools and school students to improve pest management
practices in their schools and surrounding community.
Subsequently, participants
answered and prioritized responses to the question: "What steps
should be taken in the next year to build a community-based approach to
IPM awareness in Philadelphia?" Twelve key goals with specific
objectives were identified. "We are collaborating with EPA Region IV
and Michigan Department of Agriculture to emulate highly successful school
and community IPM programs led by Mr. Larry Swain. Hopefully we can work
together to implement similar programs here in Philly. This meeting is a
good first step towards that goal," says Ed Rajotte, PA IPM
Coordinator. The PA IPM Program is dedicated to partnering with others to
overcome obstacles and to promote IPM education and use in both schools
and urban communities. For more information on School IPM, go to the PA
IPM Program's Web site at http://paipm.cas.psu.edu.
Under the "Schools" link find out more about the School IPM
effort in Pennsylvania and links to educational material from across the
country. You can also download several publications, including IPM for
Pennsylvania Schools, A How-To Manual. In addition, there is an
interactive database on the Web site to assist teachers with IPM
background information, lesson plans and support materials throughout the
U.S.
The PA IPM Program is a
collaboration between the Pennsylvania State University and the
Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture aimed at promoting integrated pest
management in both agricultural and nonagricultural situations.
For more information, contact
the program at (814) 865-2839, or Web site http://paipm.cas.psu.edu.
To contact Tere Bailey at the
Philadelphia IPM office, email her.
### Editors Contact:
Kristie Auman-Bauer
(814) 865-2839
kma147@psu.edu
