Item A: Use of Pesticides in City Parks and Buildings

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POS staff has partnered with the NCAP and a coalition of other parkland managers to research, develop and publish alternative approaches to maintaining parklands. POS staff developed and use many of the best management practices which are featured in a series of four publications produced by NCAP titled “Non-Herbicidal Weed Control Strategies Implemented by City Parks Staff in the Northwest.” Some of the non-chemical methods Facilities Management has utilized include:  Crane fly management at Fire Stations 2, 6, and 11: Implemented a monitoring system to track numbers of larvae. Decreased the irrigation of lawn areas to reduce the successful incubation of larvae. Removed thatch and aerated lawns to remove incubation habitat and increase the vigor of the lawn to better recover from pest damage. Discontinued the twice- yearly scheduled spraying for crane flies at these sites.  Squirrel damage to tree limbs at new police headquarters site: After pruning branches, deer antlers were hung in the tree to serve as a “preferred food/chew source” to keep squirrels from chewing on branches. The problem was solved without the need to trap, poison, or remove squirrels from site.  Anthracnose on London Planetrees at the Park Blocks: Deep root feeding using fish oil and kelp increased the general health and vigor of trees to aid tree in naturally fighting off the effects of the disease. No chemical treatment was necessary.  Fleas at Peterson Barn Community Center: Implemented an aggressive floor and furniture cleaning treatment and worked with the supervisor and manager to remind employees of the departmental policy not to bring pets to work. No chemical treatment was necessary.  Mice at the Animal Shelter: The Facility Management IPM information sheet was reviewed with staff at the animal shelter and a physical site assessment was made for point of entry, potential food source, and housekeeping. Recommendations were made to staff for keeping food sources securely closed and areas kept swept and clean. No chemical methods were needed. What are other cities doing? There is a wide range of approaches to pest management in other municipalities. A few municipalities have declared all of their parks to be pesticide-free. Other communities value a very manicured and weed-free appearance in their public places and they support the ongoing use of pesticides in all their parks. Many more cities and towns are struggling to maintain their parklands and cannot find the resources to manage them without the use of pesticides. Cities such as Seattle, Portland and Corvallis are taking an approach similar to Eugene’s, designating some pesticide-free areas, managing their parklands through IPM and working with their communities to bring volunteers into the parks to help with the maintenance of the pesticide-free areas. Eugene continues to be on the forefront, partnering with other agencies to develop management strategies which minimize the use of pesticides in the parklands, and working with volunteers to manage some parklands without pesticides. S:\CMO\2013 Council Agendas\M130313\S130313A.doc