- Author: Lisa Estridge
- Posted by: Elaine Lander
Do you work at or service a school or multiple schools? If so, the California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) is seeking your input about the Healthy Schools Act. Feedback from stakeholders—school district staff, child care providers, parents, teachers, and pest management professionals—is being collected throughout 2019 by DPR.
What is the Healthy Schools Act?
When pesticides are used at schools and child care centers in California, the Healthy Schools Act defines requirements for school and child care center staff, pest management professionals, and DPR. The law was originally passed by the California Legislature in 2000. In the almost 20 years since then, the law has been amended multiple times to expand the requirements. The requirements for school and child care center staff and pest management professionals include providing notification, submitting pesticide use reports, and completing training. DPR is required to facilitate the adoption of IPM practices and provide Healthy Schools Act compliance assistance throughout California.
Why is DPR asking for input?
Assembly Bill 2816 (passed in 2018) directs DPR to write a report that evaluates and provides recommendations for the Healthy Schools Act. The report will focus on implementation and compliance of each of the Healthy Schools Act requirements. DPR's School and Child Care IPM Team would like to learn directly from stakeholders about how they have implemented the law, what changes they have made to their pest management practices, and what recommendations they have for improving the law. Real-world experiences from stakeholders will help the Department to write a better report and give practical recommendations.
Stakeholders from throughout the state are encouraged to provide input by emailing DPR at HSAinput@cdpr.ca.gov. The Department's Healthy Schools Act Legislative Report webpage has additional information about the report and stakeholder involvement.
The report is due to the Legislature by January 1, 2021, and DPR needs input from you by December 31, 2019.
The Department of Pesticide Regulation's School and Child Care IPM Team would like to thank you in advance for contributing to this effort. Please direct any questions and feedback about the Healthy Schools Act Legislative Report to DPR at HSAinput@cdpr.ca.gov
- Author: Cheryl Reynolds
- Author: Andrew Mason Sutherland
- Author: Tunyalee A. Martin
Providing Integrated Pest Management Services in Schools and Child Care Settings is the new free online training module available from UC IPM that explains the history of the Healthy Schools Act and details what schools, child care centers, and pest control companies are required to do to follow the law.
IPM Advisor Andrew Sutherland, Center for Environmental Research and Children's Health (CERCH) Associate Director Asa Bradman, UC San Francisco Staff Specialist Vickie Leonard, and Luis Agurto Jr. from Pestec IPM Providers developed the training module with the input of dozens of California's pest management professionals and child care providers, using surveys, focus groups and pilot courses. The Center for Environmental Research and Children's Health is also developing a database of individuals who complete the course so that schools and child care centers can connect with pest control providers familiar with IPM and the Healthy Schools Act.
The online course is divided into three narrated presentations. The first presentation is about the Healthy Schools Act. The second is a section on IPM and how it can be applied to control common pests in schools and child care environments, such as ants, rodents, spiders, and roaches. The third presentation discusses how pest control companies can prosper by incorporating IPM principles and practices within their business model. IPM effectively and efficiently manages pests, builds professionalism within providers, and captures value for the customer while minimizing unnecessary pesticide applications, pesticide exposures, and associated negative impacts on children's health, the environment, and the larger community.
The course includes the latest Healthy Schools Act requirements that went into effect on January 1, 2015. If child care and public K-12 school staff plan to apply any non-exempt pesticides, they are now required to do the following:
1) Develop an IPM plan for the school site or school district and post it either on the school's or district's web site or send it out to all parents and staff with the annual pesticide notice.
2) Send pesticide reports at least once a year to the Department of Pesticide Regulation for all non-exempt pesticides applied by school employees. The first reports are due January 30, 2016 and cover the period from January 1, 2015 to December 31, 2015.
Beginning July 1, 2016 any professional applicator, school IPM coordinator, and school or child care employee or other unlicensed person applying pesticides must complete annually a Department of Pesticide Regulation-approved training on school IPM and safe use of pesticides.
Licensed pest management professionals can receive two continuing education units by completing the online course: one “Rules and Regulations” and one “IPM” from the Structural Pest Control Board; and one “Laws and Regulations” and one “Other” from the Department of Pesticide Regulation.
To take the course, visit the UC IPM web site. For more information on the Healthy Schools Act requirements or forms, visit the Department of Pesticide Regulation's School IPM web page.
- Author: Cheryl Reynolds
Schools are required to follow the Healthy Schools Act (HSA), a law passed in 2001 in response to increasing concern of pesticide exposure and resulting heath issues. The HSA gives parents and staff the “Right to know” about what pesticides are being applied and requires schools to keep records of applications and report information to the state. The HSA also encourages the use of integrated pest management (IPM) and the adoption of least toxic pest management practices as the primary way of managing pests in schools. Each school or district appoints an IPM coordinator to carry out the requirements of the Healthy Schools Act.
Each school is also required to maintain records for at least four years of all pesticides used and to report pesticide use to both the County Agricultural Commissioner and the Department of Pesticide Regulation. There are certain products that are exempt from the notification and posting requirements of the HSA. These include reduced-risk pesticides such as self-contained baits or traps or gels or pastes used for crack-and-crevice treatments. Antimicrobials and pesticides exempt from registration are exempt from all aspects of the Healthy Schools Act, including reporting.
While not required, schools are strongly encouraged under the HSA to adopt an integrated approach to managing pests. IPM focuses on long-term prevention of pests by monitoring and inspecting to find out what caused the pest and taking steps to eliminate those favorable conditions to reduce future problems. IPM uses a combination of methods to solve pest problems using least toxic pesticides only after other methods have allowed pests to exceed a tolerable level.
With IPM, schools get long-term solutions to pest problems. There is less pesticide used reducing the risk of pesticide exposure. Finally, less notification, posting, and recordkeeping is required from schools.
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation (DPR) School IPM Program has a new handout reminding schools of the requirements of the HSA. For more information on the School IPM program and the Healthy Schools Act, visit the DPR website, and for more information about Integrated Pest Management, visit the University of California Statewide IPM Program's website.