Integrated Pest Management Annual Report Copyrighted
May 15, 2017
City of Dubuque Consent Items # 8.
ITEM TITLE: Integrated Pest Management Annual Report
SUMMARY: City Manager transmitting the annual Integrated Pest
Management Program Report.
SUGGESTED DISPOSITION: Suggested Disposition: Receive and File
ATTACHMENTS:
Description Type
Integrated Pest Management Annual Report-MVM City Manager Memo
Memo
Staff Memo Staff Memo
IPM Report Supporting Documentation
THE CITY OF Dubuque
DUB E i"
Masterpiece on the Mississippi 2007.2012.2013
TO: The Honorable Mayor and City Council Members
FROM: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
SUBJECT: Integrated Pest Management Annual Report
DATE: May 10, 2017
Sustainable Community Coordinator Cori Burbach is transmitting the annual Integrated
Pest Management Program report.
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Mic ael C. Van Milligen
MCVM:jh
Attachment
cc: Crenna Brumwell, City Attorney
Cindy Steinhauser, Assistant City Manager
Teri Goodmann, Assistant City Manager
Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordinator
THE CDubuque
DUUB-..'*- TEAll-America .r
11111.
I h/
Masterpiece on the Mississippi 2012
TO: Mike Van Milligen, City Manager
FROM: Cori Burbach, Sustainable Community Coordinator
SUBJECT: Integrated Pest Management Annual Report
DATE: May 9, 2017
Introduction
The purpose of this memo is to transmit the annual Integrated Pest Management Program
report to the City Council.
Background
In June 2016, the Integrated Pest Management program, created by a working group of City
staff and resident representatives, was approved by the City Council. One of the
requirements of the IPM program includes an annual report detailing progress towards the
IPM program's goals. The annual report has been delivered to the Resilient Community
Advisory Commission and Parks & Recreation Advisory Commission, and is being
forwarded to the City Council for their information.
Discussion
Since the drafting of the IPM Annual Report, Usha Park has been added to the Pesticide
Free Parks list, bringing the total number of parks where pesticides are not used to ten.
Additionally, on April 22, 2017 (Earth Day), I was part of a statewide team of professionals
who launched the Good Neighbor Iowa initiative (www.goodneighboriowa.org). Good
Neighbor Iowa is a statewide public education campaign to reduce the public's, especially
children's, exposure to commonly-used lawn pesticides. It involves public health officials,
school districts, park managers, childcare centers and other community leaders who are
demonstrating that it is possible and practical to manage large areas of turf without the use
of pesticides (weed killers, insecticides, or fungicides). The goal of the group is to transform
our culture so that we appreciate diverse lawns as a way to protect public health, water
quality, and biodiversity. The initiative is led by the University of Northern Iowa, and
supported by the Iowa Department of Public Health. Dubuque's IPM work is a work in
progress, and continues to be a model for other communities interested in pursuing similar
goals.
REQUESTED ACTION
No action is required. The report is provided for your information.
Cc. Integrated Pest Management Working Group
THE CITY ODubuque II-A
U Bi
E
;111 I.mericaCi i
Masterpiece on the Mississippi 2007-2012-2013
TO: Michael C. Van Milligen, City Manager
Resilient Community Advisory Commission
FROM: Integrated Pest Management Working Group
SUBJECT: 2016 IPM Annual Report
DATE: April 4, 2017
Introduction
In January of 2016 the City was tasked with incorporating an Integrated Pest Management
program (IPM) into the daily operations of all city departments. The IIPM program was compiled
with input from both city staff and representatives from public citizen groups. The IPM program
was presented to the City Council in June and adopted on June 20th. An IPM program is
designed to look at alternative mechanical, cultural or biological methods of pest control before
using chemicals.
The IPM working group will complete an annual report that will be delivered to the City Manager
and Resilient Community Advisory Commission. While this report details practices tested in
several departments, the Leisure Services department was the first to compile data regarding
amounts of pesticides used. We will work with additional departments to collect data in 2017.
Weather Patterns
Weather trends have a direct effect on the ability for optimal performance of pesticide
applications. The application of pre-emergent herbicides is determined by the warming of the
ground and air temps in the spring of the year. The more rain events that occur during a month
also reduce the ability of herbicides to work effectively. The data in the charts below shows
chemical use for 2105 before IPM implementation and 2016 the IPM transition year.
Weather trend 2015
April May June July Aug. Sept. Oct.
Ave rage Te m p.(F) 53 70 78 81 77 79 62
Rai n(i nches) 2.9 4.08 6.43 1.47 2.88 4.85 2.67
Weather trend 2016
April May June July Aug. Sept. Oct.
Ave rage Te m p.(F) 58 69 78 82 80 72 60
Rai nfaII(inches) 3.66 4.17 4.41 4.29 4.41 3.46 2.68
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2015 vs 2016 application data
Post Emergent EPA category 2015 2016
Roundup III 2438ounces 2035 ounces
Aquaneat II 290 ounces 510 ounces
Stinger II 18tsp 4.5tsp
Pre emergent
Surflan II 2050ounces 780ounces
Pennant II 409 ounces 8.5 ounces
Sureguard II 20tsp 38tsp
The above table is comparative data from the Leisure Services department only.
Updates to Allowed Pesticide List
Aquaneat supplies have been used up and will no longer be available for use. This product is
being replaced with Rodeo, a category III chemical.
Tordon RTU supplies have been used up and will no longer be available for use. This product
is being replaced with Pathfinder II. These products are used for cut stump treatment only and
RTU product use was not tracked.
The Park Division has 12 employees that are certified pest control applicators. The amount of
herbicides shown in ounces is the amount of concentrate used for the year. Rates for each
product in ounces per gallon of water vary for each product. Round up/Aquaneat are applied at
a rate of 2 ounces of concentrate per gallon of water. Using this formula, the difference in
Round Up use was 403 ounces of concentrate or 201.5 gallons of applied product. Atypical
application is made using a 3-gallon backpack sprayer, which is a reduction of 67 backpack
applications. The applied rate for Surflan/Pennant is 1 ounce of concentrate per gallon of water.
The applied rate for Stinger/Sureguard, specialized herbicides, is %tsp per gallon of water. The
reduction numbers of pre-emergent products between the two seasons is reflective of the spring
weather trends. The inability to make applications of pre-emergent herbicides and the
effectiveness of the applications made caused an increase in the total number of post emergent
applications during 2016.
A total of 108 applications were made in 2016, down from 194 applications in 2015. The
reduction of actual applications is broken down in the chart below. The most significant
difference is the applications to playgrounds. During the development of the IPM program,
playgrounds were listed as an area that would no longer be treated with pesticides. Thus, in
2016 no applications were made to playgrounds. The high percentage of applications for
mulch beds reflects the designated mode for high profile landscapes such as the Port of
Dubuque. The pavement percentage is representative of the applications being made for public
traffic safety. The other subtle differences among the categories would be the result of the
mode designations of the IPM.
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%of total applications %of total applications
Areas Applied 2015 Areas Applied 2016
Ball fields 4.12% Ball fields 4.260/.
Landscape/mulch 55% Landscape/mulch 64.81%
Pavement 15.46% Pavement 21.69%
Tree rings 4.12% Tree rings 8.33%
Fencelines 27.16% Fencelines 3.70%
Lightpoles/fixtures 5.15% Lightpoles/fixtures 4.62%
Floodwall/port 1.03% Floodwall/port 2.78%
Prairie 1.03% Prairie 0.93%
Playgrounds 17.01% Playgrounds 0.001/0
Alternative Methods
A variety of non-chemical controls were tested during the 2016 growing season.
Vinegar
Over the course of the season, several approaches to pest management were tested by the
park division. Staff purchased industrial grade Vinegar bottled for weed control. The vinegar
solution was 30% acetic acid. The test sites showed good results hours after application but
were only successful on hot sunny days. The weeds died back to the ground leaving the root
unaffected and regrowth occurred within a couple weeks. This product would require multiple
reapplications to be affective for use within the department practices. The extreme odor of the
product was noticeable throughout the park, which could cause sensitivity problems with park
patrons. The same protective wear is required for use due to the odor and burning affect acetic
acid has to skin. The Fire department has also used this as an alternative method with the same
results.
Recommendation: This product may be an option for home use but not for commercial use in
public places.
Rock Salt
This test product was thought of for a different approach to prevent weeds in the safety surface
required for all playsets. The safety surface is composed of impact tested bark mulch. When
this product decays it turns to soil and is optimal for weed growth. The application of a thin layer
of rock salt before new safety surface layered under the playset changes the soils ability to
allow seed germination. Especially in larger quantities, this application does affect the ph of the
soil. This practice is ideal for playsets, where no plant growth is desired, but should not be used
in landscape situations due to the need for plant growth.
Recommendation: This process would be acceptable in small amounts in areas were runoff and
leaching would not occur due to the impact on soil and water quality.
Hot Water
The Public Works department tested the use of scalding hot water to remove weeds from some
of the permeable alleys. It showed good short term results, but as a long-term option is unclear.
This technique was also used at Flora pool this past summer. Pool zones in the IPM are
"pesticide free" so this was an easy practice to help keep the walkway cracks free of weeds.
Recommendation: This process showed only short term results. Without an easy access to
large quantities of hot water, this alternate method only works for small areas.
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Weed Burner
A weed burner is a wand on a hose attached to a propane tank. The device was awkward to
use in most areas and required two employees to operate. The ability to only use the device on
hard surfaces with little or no obstructions limited the areas for testing. Burning weeds is a
timely operation and was only affective in killing the weed to the surface with no effect on the
root.
Recommendation: Until a more practical burner is developed for commercial operations, this
method would be acceptable for home use on driveways with caution.
Additional City Departmental Updates
Public Works
Public Works has limited the spraying of the turf areas in the Port of Dubuque by applying a
granular based fertilizer with weed control. The granular application did not show an overall
success for the control of weed issues.
Fire
The Fire department has discontinued treatment of the lawns, landscape, etc., with pesticides at
all fire houses. All firehouse building pest control being done when needed is being contracted
out to a licensed contractor to ensure least toxic pesticides are used with proper application.
Building Services
The Building Services department is responsible for pest treatment at City Hall. The process
was updated to better protect employee health during and after treatments.
1. Notify all staff 24 hours in advance of the application.
2. Perform the application prior to City Hall opening at 8:00 AM, and make sure the
application is dry by 8:00 AM
3. Provide the Staff with the MSDS sheet on the product used.
4. Contractor complies with new requirements for pest treatment.
5. Our staff will not perform anymore applications of chemicals, for example wasp or hornet
spray, etc.
Leisure Services
The Park division began implementation of the IPM program in the spring of 2016, Prior to the
City Council adoption of the IPM. The maintenance staff began information training on daily
practice changes. The list of pesticides used was evaluated to select only products that are
least toxic to the environment, per EPA standards. Mechanical methods of weed control such
as hand pulling weeds, using line trimmers, and mulching plant beds will be used when
possible before pesticide application.
New onsite signage was developed to better inform the public of the pesticide used, date and
time of application, and target pest being treated.
The division also named nine city parks as "pesticide free". These parks vary in size and were
located throughout the community to offer the option to all demographics of the city. The
following list is the selected parks:
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1. Allison Henderson Park
2. Cleveland Park
3. Falk Park
4. Riley Park
5. Pinard Park
6. Southern Park
7. Teddy Bear Park
8. Welu Park
9. Maus Park
All of the parks selected with the exception of Maus Park have a playset.
Washington Park was originally listed in the IPM as a mode 1 area, which means that the lawn
was designated to be treated for weeds. Treatment of the park lawn was submitted as an
improvement level package during the FY2017 budget process because of the high-profile
usage of the park. Due to the adoption of the IPM program and a request to the City Council,
Washington Park was changed back to a mode 2 park. All mode 2 park lawns are not treated
for weeds.
In an effort to promote sustainable and pollinator friendly landscapes, three pollinator
landscaped beds were planted in two city parks. A.Y McDonald Park has two of the beds and
the third is located in Pyatigorsk Park.
Bunker Hill Golf Course has also created and adopted a specific IPM program that applies to
the golf course. Practices on a golf course are unique when compared to citywide operations
for pest control.
Notification System
A total of 39 people subscribed to the new"Pesticide Application Notification" on the City of
Dubuque Notify Me system. The notify system sends a text or email to the client identifying the
zone of the city where an application might occur for a two-week period.
Contractor Form
With the adoption of the IPM program, all contracted services for the City of Dubuque relating
to pest control will be provided with a copy of the IPM program. A signed form will be returned
to the department contracting the services stating the contractor will adhere to the IPM program
before start of the contract services.
Staff Education
Members of the IPM committee have presented informational training about the IPM program to
the City Leadership Team and frontline staff in all departments.
cc: Park and Recreation Advisory Commission
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