Letter issued to Enterprise School District Parents regarding Integrated Pest Management

ENTERPRISE- Enterprise School District #21 has released an updated notice to parents regarding its Integrated Pest Management plan and pesticide application protocols. 

That letter, addressed to parents in the district, reads as follows:

“To the Parents of Enterprise School District #21 students:

This letter is to inform you of the Integrated Pest Management (IPM) law enacted on July 1, 2012 that Oregon Schools must abide by (ORS 634.700-634.750). We are required to notify staff, students, and parents anytime there is a scheduled application of a pesticide at any of our school campuses. In that notification you will find the expected application date, name of the pesticide being applied, the EPA registration number of the pesticide, and other information.  You will find our IPM plan on the Enterprise School District #21 web page along with a notification of any planned pesticide applications. Our web address is:  enterprise.k12.or.us

For each application of a pesticide – inside or outside – we are also required to post in the vicinity of the application on that school campus. So on occasion you may see signs posted informing you of a pesticide application at a school, but please be assured that we are doing everything we can to keep these applications to a minimum and only using the safest of products to achieve the expected results. There will be contact information on the application posting signs of who you can call if you ever have questions about what is going on or what products are being used.

An OSU faculty member with expertise in pesticide toxicology has reviewed all of the pesticides that we use, and they meet the requirements of a “low-impact pesticide” as defined by ORS 634.705 (5).  They never have a label category that is higher than Caution, and contain no known carcinogens. You can find a copy of the approved list of pesticides at the following web page: http://www.ipmnet.org/tim/IPM_in_Schools/IPM%20Materials/8-5-13_Low-Impact_Pesticide_List.pdf  If you have any questions or concerns about these products, I encourage you to contact the National Pesticide Information Center at http://npic.orst.edu

I would also encourage you to review the entire OSU School IPM program at http://www.ipmnet.org/tim/IPM_in_Schools/IPM_in_Schools-Main_Page.html to see what we are doing and how we go about improving the condition of our schools to create a healthier environment for your children. It is all about educating, communicating, and eliminating pests through cleaning and organizing our environment. We are sealing up our buildings, eliminating clutter, keeping food in plastic storage containers, eliminating leaks and drips in our plumbing, properly pruning our landscaping, and being more thorough in our cleaning efforts. Through these efforts we are eliminating the three things that pests need to survive: Food, Water, and Shelter. We are also providing a healthier learning environment for your children, and saving the school district precious dollars that would otherwise be spent on pesticides.

If you have questions you may contact me at:  

Adam Ward

award@enterprise.k12.or.us

541-426-7613

Thank you,

Adam Ward

IPM Coordinator

Enterprise School District #21”