Summit on Clean Water through Residential IPM Sparks Outreach Ideas and New Grants Program
The "Green-Blue Summit: Clean Water through Residential Integrated Pest Management" ( http://northeastipm.org/Greenbluesummit.cfm), held near Philadelphia on July 18-19, 2007, brought together more than 100 professionals interested in the connections between integrated pest management (IPM) and water quality in turf and structural settings. Presentations focused on water quality risks posed by pest management practices in residential landscapes and structures, and on educating the public to minimizing these risks. Participants from private industry, government, land grant universities, and nonprofit organizations collaborated in workshops to identify key issues and develop strategies for educating consumers. Participants in the summit brainstormed project ideas, developing messages that would help to educate residents and suggesting creative ways of disseminating these messages (see Green-Blue Summit project ideas at http://neipmc.org/greenblue/project_ideas.htm).
As an outgrowth of the summit, the Northeastern IPM Center is launching the Green-Blue Grants Program ( http://northeastipm.org/Greenbluesummit.cfm#rfa. Funded projects will focus on teaching about residential integrated pest management and how it affects water quality in the Northeast. The goal of this program is to raise the level of education among northeastern residents by funding specific educational workshops and promotional materials. This program will help strengthen the communication networks in the Northeast and residents ability to implement IPM.
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