Could
‘Green’ Pest Control Be the Future?
Pest control is a profession that
is changing beyond all recognition.
For
example, many years ago, the pest controller was styled as an urban ‘game
keeper’. They kept all kinds of animals and bugs at bay, using whatever method
they felt fit.
This meant laying poison and
walking away, in most cases.
But, it became clearer that as a
society, we no longer want everything removed or exterminated at all costs. The
law dictates that no bird or animal should suffer unnecessarily. Likewise, it
was found that other non-target species were being killed or hurt in our
pursuit of getting rid of ‘a pest’.
Laws and regulations have
changes. The pest controller is a professional with increasing responsibilities
at a time when we are no longer willing to tolerant pests, and want them dealt
with quickly, safely, humanely and responsibly.
The
‘Green’ Option
Recycling, upcycling, living in
harmony with our surroundings rather than stripping it of everything that is
valuable, is now a way of life for all of us. It has filtered across many
avenues in our daily life
and it is now working its way
into pest control. Although some pest controllers have long maintained that
they have been contributing to looking after the environment.
The green pest control movement
is not about not using poison or live traps – it means using these sparingly.
It’s about more than that.
Rather than being labelled as
green pest control, the pest control profession is calling it Integrated Pest
Control Management. But what is it?
Integrated
Pest Control Management – the Facts
Pest control in many ways, is the
response of a professional to a call for help from domestic and business
customers ‘under siege’ from a particular pest, whether it is a bedbug
infestation or rats in the basement.
Clearly, there are pests that need dealing with quickly and efficiently – like rodents. This is one part of the
job.
The second part of the job is
prevention advice, making changes that will impact on stopping it happening
again, or reducing the frequency and scale of an infestation.
And there is a third part – pest
proofing, management and control, which doesn’t necessarily mean eradication or
extermination. This is because integrated pest control management is an
understanding that although a pest, these animals, birds and bugs are an
important part of our living and breathing earth.
We just don’t want them living in
our homes, sharing our beds and wrecking our environment.
How
is Integrated Pest Management ‘Green’?
When pest control is managed with a
proactive approach from a qualified pest control company and its technicians,
the use of insecticides and pesticides can be reduced by a whopping 90%.
By promoting how to prevent pests
in and around properties, domestic and business, pests can be less of a
problem.
