Pest Management
Public Health Pesticide Application Notification from the Butte County Mosquito and Vector Control District.
On September 27, 2000, Governor Gray Davis signed into law the Healthy Schools Act of 2000. This law requires school districts to notify employees and parents/guardians about pesticides used in their schools, and requires the Department of Pesticide Regulation to promote the voluntary adoption of integrated pest management practices in schools. Each school district is to implement the following requirements:
Provide school staff and parents/guardians with annual written notification of all non-exempt pesticide products the District expects to use on school grounds.
Each school shall provide the opportunity for interested staff and parents/guardians to register with the District if they want to be notified of individual pesticide applications at the school before they occur.
Post warning signs in areas where pesticides will be applied. These signs will be posted 24 hours before and 72 hours after the pesticide application.
Each school will maintain records of all pesticide use at the school for four years and make the records available to the public upon request.
It is the policy of the State that effective least-toxic pest management practices should be the preferred method of managing pests at schools. To that end, the District will adhere to the philosophy and definition of integrated pest management (IPM) as defined by the Healthy Schools Act of 2000. The Act defines IPM as a pest management strategy that focuses on long-term prevention or suppression of pest problems through a combination of techniques such as monitoring for pest presence and establishing treatment threshold levels, using non-chemical practices to make habitat less conducive to pest development, improving sanitation, and using mechanical and physical controls. Pesticides that pose the least possible hazard and are effective in a manner that minimizes risks to people, property, and the environment are used only after careful monitoring indicates they are needed according to pre-established guidelines and treatment thresholds.
PESTICIDE APPLICATION
The District will not use any pesticides known to have cancer causing agents, or causing damage to the reproductive or nervous system. This restriction applies to pesticide applications by district staff and contractor alike. Only those pesticides listed on the District's authorized list will be utilized to control District pests and then will be applied only when all other less toxic control measures have failed to reach successful results. There will be no pesticide applications during regular school hours, unless the presence of that pest is deemed more dangerous than the treatment.
Staff and parents may register with the District to receive notification of any pesticide application at their work site/child's school site 72 hours prior to the application. The notification will include the product's name, active ingredient and the intended application date.
To register with the District, mail the Pesticide Notification Registration form (available online and at work site/school site) to:
Chico Unified School District
Director, Maintenance/Operations
2455 Carmichael Drive
Chico, CA 95928
You may also drop off your registration form at the same address between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Warning signs will be posted 24 hours prior to the application and will remain posted for 72 hours after the application. The sign will display the term Warning/Pesticide Treated Area and will include the name of the pesticide, the manufacturer's name, the United States Environmental Protection Agency's product registration number, the intended application date, the areas to be treated, and the reason for the pesticide treatment.
PESTICIDE EXEMPTIONS
Pesticide products deployed in the form of a self-contained bait or trap, gel or paste deployed as a crack and crevice treatment, any pesticide exempted from regulation by the United States Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. Sec. 25 (b)), or antimicrobial pesticides, including sanitizers and disinfectants, are exempt from the record keeping, written notification, and posting requirements of the Healthy Schools Act of 2000.
PROCUREMENT/DISPENSING OF PESTICIDES
The Maintenance/Operations Manager is a certified pesticide applicator and will be responsible for the purchase of pesticides. No purchase of pesticides intended to be applied on District property will be allowed by school sites or individual staff members. At the discretion of the Maintenance/Operations Manager, and with proper training and information to ensure compliance to both the Department of Pesticide Regulations and the Healthy Schools Act of 2000 safety regulations and laws in applying a pesticide, a staff member may be allowed to disperse a pesticide.
DISTRICT IPM COORDINATOR
The designated District IPM Coordinator will be the Director of Maintenance/Operations, or a designee, who will monitor all pest problems. The IPM Coordinator will be responsible for approving the list of all pesticides/herbicides for use in the schools, monitoring and/or coordinating the issuance of notification letters, site record keeping of pesticide usage, and maintenance of the registrant list as defined in the Healthy Schools Act of 2000.
RECORD KEEPING AND REPORTING
The Maintenance & Operations Department maintains records of all pesticides applied at the sites. Those records will be kept for four years, and are available to any member of the public.
On July 1 of every year, the Director of Maintenance/Operations, or designee, will gather the above data and will provide a collective report detailing the following information site-by-site:
Each and every pesticide application from the previous year;
Date application was made;
Pest or problem being treated; and
Summary of all applications for that site.
This report will be submitted to the Superintendent and will be made accessible to the public and staff.
Safety Data Sheets (SDS) for all pesticides used at a site will be maintained at the site and will be available to the staff and public.
For more information regarding pesticides and pesticide use reduction, visit the Department of Pesticide Regulation's Web site at http://www.cdpr.ca.gov and click School IPM Program.
Provide school staff and parents/guardians with annual written notification of all non-exempt pesticide products the District expects to use on school grounds.
Each school shall provide the opportunity for interested staff and parents/guardians to register with the District if they want to be notified of individual pesticide applications at the school before they occur.
Post warning signs in areas where pesticides will be applied. These signs will be posted 24 hours before and 72 hours after the pesticide application.
Each school will maintain records of all pesticide use at the school for four years and make the records available to the public upon request.
It is the policy of the State that effective least-toxic pest management practices should be the preferred method of managing pests at schools. To that end, the District will adhere to the philosophy and definition of integrated pest management (IPM) as defined by the Healthy Schools Act of 2000. The Act defines IPM as a pest management strategy that focuses on long-term prevention or suppression of pest problems through a combination of techniques such as monitoring for pest presence and establishing treatment threshold levels, using non-chemical practices to make habitat less conducive to pest development, improving sanitation, and using mechanical and physical controls. Pesticides that pose the least possible hazard and are effective in a manner that minimizes risks to people, property, and the environment are used only after careful monitoring indicates they are needed according to pre-established guidelines and treatment thresholds.
PESTICIDE APPLICATION
The District will not use any pesticides known to have cancer causing agents, or causing damage to the reproductive or nervous system. This restriction applies to pesticide applications by district staff and contractor alike. Only those pesticides listed on the District's authorized list will be utilized to control District pests and then will be applied only when all other less toxic control measures have failed to reach successful results. There will be no pesticide applications during regular school hours, unless the presence of that pest is deemed more dangerous than the treatment.
Staff and parents may register with the District to receive notification of any pesticide application at their work site/child's school site 72 hours prior to the application. The notification will include the product's name, active ingredient and the intended application date.
To register with the District, mail the Pesticide Notification Registration form (available online and at work site/school site) to:
Chico Unified School District
Director, Maintenance/Operations
2455 Carmichael Drive
Chico, CA 95928
You may also drop off your registration form at the same address between the hours of 7:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Warning signs will be posted 24 hours prior to the application and will remain posted for 72 hours after the application. The sign will display the term Warning/Pesticide Treated Area and will include the name of the pesticide, the manufacturer's name, the United States Environmental Protection Agency's product registration number, the intended application date, the areas to be treated, and the reason for the pesticide treatment.
PESTICIDE EXEMPTIONS
Pesticide products deployed in the form of a self-contained bait or trap, gel or paste deployed as a crack and crevice treatment, any pesticide exempted from regulation by the United States Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. Sec. 25 (b)), or antimicrobial pesticides, including sanitizers and disinfectants, are exempt from the record keeping, written notification, and posting requirements of the Healthy Schools Act of 2000.
PROCUREMENT/DISPENSING OF PESTICIDES
The Maintenance/Operations Manager is a certified pesticide applicator and will be responsible for the purchase of pesticides. No purchase of pesticides intended to be applied on District property will be allowed by school sites or individual staff members. At the discretion of the Maintenance/Operations Manager, and with proper training and information to ensure compliance to both the Department of Pesticide Regulations and the Healthy Schools Act of 2000 safety regulations and laws in applying a pesticide, a staff member may be allowed to disperse a pesticide.
DISTRICT IPM COORDINATOR
The designated District IPM Coordinator will be the Director of Maintenance/Operations, or a designee, who will monitor all pest problems. The IPM Coordinator will be responsible for approving the list of all pesticides/herbicides for use in the schools, monitoring and/or coordinating the issuance of notification letters, site record keeping of pesticide usage, and maintenance of the registrant list as defined in the Healthy Schools Act of 2000.
RECORD KEEPING AND REPORTING
The Maintenance & Operations Department maintains records of all pesticides applied at the sites. Those records will be kept for four years, and are available to any member of the public.
On July 1 of every year, the Director of Maintenance/Operations, or designee, will gather the above data and will provide a collective report detailing the following information site-by-site:
Each and every pesticide application from the previous year;
Date application was made;
Pest or problem being treated; and
Summary of all applications for that site.
This report will be submitted to the Superintendent and will be made accessible to the public and staff.
Safety Data Sheets (SDS) for all pesticides used at a site will be maintained at the site and will be available to the staff and public.
For more information regarding pesticides and pesticide use reduction, visit the Department of Pesticide Regulation's Web site at http://www.cdpr.ca.gov and click School IPM Program.
