Integrated Pest Management ("IPM")

Integrated Pest Management is a process consisting of the balanced use of cultural, biological, and chemical procedures that are environmentally compatible, economically feasible, and socially acceptable to eliminate pest populations.

Integrated means many strategies are used together to avoid or solve a pest problem. For example, strategies would involve understanding of pest life styles, knowing how to make structures unattractive to pest, and knowledge of which pesticides are least toxic to non-pest animals and humans. In addition, understanding the tolerance level of the individual property owner is important in knowing how aggressive pest treatment must be.

Pests are unwanted organisms that are a nuisance to humans or domestic animals, and/or can cause injury to humans, animals, plants, structures, or possessions.

Management is the process of making decisions in a systematic way to eliminate pests.

Why is IPM better than traditional pest "extermination?"
Older methods of "extermination" used increasingly powerful and poisonous chemicals to eradicate pests, and resulted in environmental damage, and creation of chemically resistant pests. IPM is much gentler to the environment, and control methods are more narrowly targeted to specific pests. Instead of artificial pesticides, many of the currently used chemicals are based on extracts from plants and are harmless to people and animals. Some depend on insect hormones, or interrupt insect life cycles. Because insects are built very differently from plants, humans, and pets, these more natural chemicals are gentle to these other organisms. This results in less use of pesticides, less potential danger to humans, pets, and plants, and less development of resistance to pesticides so that low doses remain effective.

However, Integrated Pest Management requires a more active role on the part of the home owner and a partnership relationship with us for maximum control.

IPM Steps

1. Prevention - Consider the life style of the pest, and use.
2. Monitoring - Check for signs of the pest and for maintenance of barriers to infestation.
3. Assessment - Establish a standard for when action must be taken to regain control.
4. Action (control measures) - act when pests have exceeded the threshold amount.