sKSLd-s:
Conference
Report
November 17-18th, 2009
Arlington, VA
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Table of Contents
Introduction
Session Summaries:
Welcome & Keynote 1
The New Vision for PESP: Driving Environmental Innovation in Pest Management 1
New PESP Overview 1
PESP Member Success Story and Discussion 2
Leveraging the Power of Public-Private Partnerships & Discussion 2
Sustainable Agriculture: Growers Protecting their Most Valuable Resource - The Earth....3
Community 1PM: An Integrative Approach to Reducing Risk Where We Live, Work, and
Play 4
Restoring the Chesapeake Bay: Opportunities for Collaboration 5
PESP Strategy Workshops 6
Listening to Our Members: Live, Work, Play, and Farm 7
Other Opportunities for PESP Members 7
Collaboration > Innovation > Healthier Communities and a Healthier Planet 7
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for Effective Environmental
mm
Introduction
The Environmental Stewardship Branch's 2009 National Conference - The New PESP: Building Stronger Partnerships
for Effective Environmental Stewardship - took place on November 17th and 18th in Arlington, Virginia. The
conference brought together over 70 diverse PESP Members and introduced the newly improved
Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program (PESP). The following report provides highlights
from conference, organized by session on the agenda.
Welcome & Keynote
Speaker: Debbie Edwards, Director of the Office of Pesticide Programs (OPP)
Debbie Edwards opened the conference by providing a brief discussion on the regulatory
responsibilities of OPP, alongside which the Environmental Stewardship Branch (ESB)
operates. She emphasized how PESP is a product of its dedicated Members who, together
with EPA, strive to reduce the potential health and environmental risks associated with
pesticide use. She emphasized the importance of this conference in creating a constructive, two-
way communication between Members and EPA.
The New Vision for PESP: Driving Environmental Innovation in Pest Management
Speaker: Keith Matthews, Acting Director of OPP's Biopesficides and Pollution Prevention Division (BPPD)
In introducing the New PESP, Keith Matthews assured Members that the new PESP will not lose sight of its mission,
and will keep its focus on reducing risk. After all, ESB/PESP is EPA's "arm" for promoting reduced
risk and Integrated Pest Management (IPM) practices. Stewardship is important to all levels
of EPA, as it is crucial to protecting human health and the environment. Mr. Matthews also
summarized a brief history of PESP.
New PESP Overview
Speaker: Tom Brennan, Chief of ESB
Tom Brennan further explained the new PESP by introducing the newly structured
Program, ensuring it will not abandon its original goals, but rather, move forward with
those same goals and improve its relationship with Members. The new program structure
will allow for more communication and collaboration in aspects such as annual reporting on
performance measures (e.g. risk reduction, economic, and education). Mr. Brennan provided an overview of PESP's
new tiered structure (bronze, silver and gold) and introduced the groups Live, Work, Play, and
Farm (these groups will replace the old "sectors"). He encouraged PESP Members to use this
opportunity to not only learn for themselves, but to educate EPA and apply appropriate
pressure on EPA to take action implementing this mission of risk reduction.
Mr. Brennan went onto describe the lessons he's learned from visiting various PESP
Members over the years. He highlighted the achievements of Members who are making
significant strides in environmental stewardship, such as wine growers efforts to move
toward sustainability and new technology used in managing golf courses. From his site visits,
Mr. Brennan learned firsthand about the challenges of adopting IPM and interpreting the
results of IPM practices. He emphasized the importance of Members and EPA collaborating
through PESP because it mutually advances the goal of reducing risk. Together PESP Members
and EPA can "Keep pushing IPM forward! Keep driving! Keep getting it done!"
The New PESP: Building Stronger Partnerships for Effective Environmental Stewardship Conference Report
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PESP Member Success Story and Discussion
Speaker: Greg Lyman, Environmental Program Director for the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America
(GCSAA)
Spotlighting a PESP Member Success Story, Greg Lyman presented the commendable efforts the Golf Course
Superintendents Association of America (GCSAA) has taken toward sustainability. GCSAA has been a PESP member
since 1995 and was one of the first PESP Champions in 2002. GCSAA has chosen not to ignore
the substantial economic, environmental and social impact golf courses have on communities;
rather, through its research efforts, GCSAA realized golf courses can (and need to) be
compatible with the environment when properly managed. Previously, aggregate data
on golf courses' environmental practices did not exist, so in 2005, GCSAA developed a
multi-year Golf Course Environmental Profile. The project collects data on the physical
characteristics of golf courses, water use and conservation, nutrient use, pesticide use,
energy use, and environmental practices. The results of the project will allow golf
superintendents and other facility personnel to become better and more environmentally
sustainable managers. Through this project, GCSAA has already begun to pinpoint
major weaknesses and changes that need to be made in golf course management. Upon
completion, the environmental profile will be the tool to push the golf course industry towards
environmental sustainability.
Leveraging the Power of Public-Private Partnerships & Discussion
Speaker: Mark James, Real Estate Development Officer of the Community Preservation and Development Corporation
(CPDC)
Mark James demonstrated the importance of public-private partnerships by highlighting the Wheeler Terrace Project
as a prime example of how partnerships can advance project goals. Wheeler Terrace, located in Washington
D.C., was a poorly managed affordable housing development, and is currently being renovated by the Community
Preservation and Development Corporation (CPDC). The focal point of the Wheeler renovation was environmental
and human health goals - Wheeler is going to be D.C.'s first LEED certified (Gold) affordable housing project.
CPDC is redesigning the buildings to improve indoor air quality and use more resource efficient practices such as
sand filter stormwater management, dual flush toilets, low flow showers, no irrigation, and EnergyStar appliances.
In addition, IPM will be implemented at the site, primarily for rodent and cockroach control. The project will lower
expenses, reduce tenant waste, decrease tenant turnover, reduce water use by 20 percent, and lower maintenance
and replacement costs.
Wheeler leveraged the public's involvement through acquiring almost half of their funding from government sources.
Acquiring government support allowed the CPDC to reduce risks in the development process and use public dollars
to leverage private investment. The Wheeler project sets an example of how affordable housing can be green, and
most importantly, how public-private partnerships can be leveraged.
Sustained Excellence
in Integrated Pest Management (1PM) Awards
For the first time, PESP recognized five outstanding Members with Sustained Excellence
in Integrated Pest Management (1PM) awards. Awardees are PESP Members who received at
least three PESP Champion awards since 2003. They represent organizations with a continuing
commitment to improve and demonstrate the benefits associated with IPM, participate in education
and outreach activities, reduce risk to human health and the environment through IPM, and promote
environmental stewardship and best management practices. PESP's 2009 Sustained Excellence in
IPM awardees are: Central Coast Vineyard Team; Glades Crop Care, Inc.; IPM Institute of
North America, Inc.; Lodi-Woodbridge Winegrape Commission; and the
U.S. Department of Defense
The New PESP: Building Stronger Partnerships for Effective Environmentcd Stewardship Conference Report
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Agriculture, Community IPM, and Restoring the Chesapeake Bayt
Sustainable Agriculture: Growers Protecting their Most Valuable Resource - The Earth
Speakers: Jack Housenger, Acting Associate Director of the Biological and Economic Analysis Division (BEAD);
Cliff Ohm art, former Sustainable Winegrowing Director of Lodi-Woodbridge Winegrape Commission;
Georgiann Miller, Program Quality Manger of Sysco
Moderator: Stephanie Plummer, ESB
The Sustainable Agriculture Panel Session engaged panelists from the government, industry and a non-profit
organization to discuss their different perspectives on activities related to sustainable agriculture.
Jack Housenger represented the EPA/OPP perspective on sustainable agriculture. While the concept of sustainable
agriculture encompasses a range of issues including energy, economic, and social issues, within OPP,
the primary focus is on the use of pesticides in crop production.
Mr. Housenger serves as the EPA/OPP representative in the Leonardo Academy's sustainable
agriculture standard setting initiative. The objective of this initiative is to establish a
comprehensive framework and a common set of economic, environmental, and social
metrics by which to assess whether an agricultural crop has been produced and handled
in a sustainable manner. PESP Members can be involved in this effort by seeking out
opportunities to participate in the standards development process,
such as the Leonardo Academy sustainable agriculture standard
or the Keystone Center's Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture.
They can also contribute to the effort by continuing to be
active in PESP.
Cliff Ohmart presented on the work of the Lodi-Woodbridge Winegrape
Commission (LWWC), a key player in sustainable agriculture. Mr. Ohmart
briefed participants on the evolution of LWWC's Sustainable Winegrowing
Program, from a grower outreach effort in 1 991 to a full-fledged sustainability
program supplemented by a Winegrower's Workbook in 2002. The
Workbook is a self-assessment tool for defining, implementing, and measuring
sustainable viticulture through addressing over 160 critical issues. The success
of the workbook's implementation spawned the Lodi Rules for Sustainable
Winegrowing, California's first peer-reviewed sustainable winegrowing
standards. The Lodi Rules are the framework by which all LWWC growers can
certify their vineyards as sustainable. The program has certified over 150,000
acres and continues to grow. LWWC exemplifies an organization dedicated to
sustainability and IPM.
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Another exemplary PESP Member, Sysco, was represented by Georgiann Miller, demonstrating
the food distributor perspective on sustainable agriculture. Sysco has been an active
member of PESP since 2005 and was a 2008 PESP Champion. At Sysco, environmental
stewardship and rural vitality are at the heart of their company. In 2004, Sysco
worked closely with the IPM Institute of North America to develop a comprehensive
IPM program for their suppliers. Sysco has continued to enhance this program over
the years through an independent council review and an active evaluation approach
to ensure the program is resulting in effective, efficient and overall proper use of
IPM practices by program participants. Two astounding examples of their efforts, in
the last year alone, of their efforts include a pesticide avoidance of 601,590 pounds
active ingredient (with 1.5 million pounds in the past four years) and a fertilizer
avoidance of 1 8.3 million pounds. One cannot deny the positive impact Sysco has had
on their suppliers' growing practices.
The New PESP: Building Stronger Partnerships for Effective Environmental Stewardship Conference Report
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Community IPM: An Integrative Approach to Reducing Risk Where We Live, Work, and Play
Speakers: Lauren Necochea, Deputy Director of Evaluation from the Baltimore City Health Department;
Dennis Alexander, Operations Manager from the Sarasota County Government in Florida;
Tom Green, President of the IPM Institute of North America.
Moderator: Lee Tanner, ESB
Participants of this panel session learned about proactive approaches to Community
IPM with presenters highlighting the efforts of two local governments and a
non-profit organization. Lauren Necochea started the session by introducing
the progress of IPM in Baltimore, Maryland. In Baltimore, IPM efforts first
started with a comprehensive healthy housing program and expanded
further due to the need for bed bug management. In the past year,
Baltimore initiated an IPM in public housing program resulting in a 97
percent reduction in cockroach infestations and 100
percent reduction in spray applications. Currently,
Baltimore is using a PRIA2 grant from ESB to
expand their IPM and healthy housing efforts
under a new initiative titled Safe Pest
Management for Health.
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An additional local government perspective
was provided by Dennis Alexander of Sarasota
County, FL, who has been ingrained with IPM .. -a- .Tiwm
practices since the 1970s. While Mr. Alexander worked JgBW0Biffiil
in the professional pest management field, he found IPM JD©{pIbMs
demand from customers to be minimal. On the other hand, he received enormous interest from the
Sarasota County government. Previously, landscape and pest management used to be separate entities, but
in order to conserve resources the government reorganized the functions into one program. The government's interest
in IPM was to ensure proper management of human health risks and to increase awareness through educational
outreach. Mr. Alexander embraced his role managing this department, and has made exceptional strides towards
protecting human health and the environment.
Community IPM has been further exemplified by the efforts of Tom Green, who has an
extensive background in IPM practices and shaped his career around increasing IPM
awareness for consumers. Early in his career, Mr. Green attempted
to attract large corporations to adopt IPM, but most companies
were not interested. When these efforts lulled, Mr. Green
changed his focus to schools, and with funding from a
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PRIA2 grant, created the IPM Star schools certification
program. IPM Star began as a three year test model
to engage stakeholders in school pest management.
After certification was announced for schools,
Mr. Green started to receive positive
feedback and demand from parents
to certify their children's schools. The
'consumer" demand spearheaded
the IPM Star program and in the
past decade over 40 schools
have been certified.
The New PESP: Building Stronger Partnerships for Effective Environmentcd Stewardship Conference Report
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Restoring the Chesapeake Bay: Opportunities for Collaboration
Speakers: Reggie Parrish, EPA Office of Water;
Steve Carr, Consultant and Advisor to the Mayor of Annapolis;
Chris Forth, Regional Technical Manager of TruGreen Companies;
Joellen Lampman, Program Manger for Audubon International;
Zora Lathan, Executive Director of the Chesapeake Ecology Center.
Moderator: Ed Brandt, ESB
Reggie Parrish began this panel session by outlining the environmental challenges
surrounding the Chesapeake Bay. The Bay is the largest estuary in North America
and the third largest in the world, covering six states and Washington, DC. Last
May, President Obama launched a restoration of the Bay through signing an Executive
Order that signified the bay as a national treasure, allowing federal efforts/resources
(from seven Agencies) to be directed towards protecting and restoring the Bay.
The rest of the panel session focused on collaborative efforts companies, organizations, and local governments
have initiated to restore the Chesapeake Bay. Steve Carr of Annapolis, Maryland emphasized the fundamental
role local government plays in Bay restoration efforts. He asserted that a combination of unawareness by citizens,
zoning/land use, and lack of municipality participation (only 50 active out of 3,000) is substantially hindering Bay
restoration. To spur awareness of local environmental issues, Annapolis created a GreenScape Program where local
citizens volunteer to plant trees and vegetation. With over 700 participants annually, in the past
ISte 1 8 years, more than 41,000 plants and 36,000 trees have been planted. The success of
this program has prompted collaborative partnerships between local organizations/
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businesses and the local government to help fund GreenScape, and also, spread
__ awareness of the program.
QBSd(BEfiWfei) ifegatfu&g Chris Forth of TruGreen represented the industry perspective on cleaning up
the Bay. In Maryland, law regulates commercial applications of fertilizers,
figpfirasil but not homeowner applications. However, application by homeowners
was done with less understanding of application rates and poor
<35iifltare^6Snnni»ffihnt^toffa|j^ application equipment which could more likely lead to pollution of the
B°y- Because of this, TruGreen began utilizing an active approach to
promoting healthy lawns and environments to homeowners. TruGreen
- - - - has distributed educational materials to customers and is working with
state and local organizations to develop an educational statewide
program for homeowners with a roadmap for responsible lawncare
that everyone can follow. In addition, through TruGreen's collaboration
- - with state and local governments and organizations, they have developed
!SHrIiaest management practices (BMP) and trainings for turf grass professionals.
At Audubon International, the work heavily relies on five initiatives: community
engagement, planning and action; eco-design and development; environmental
stewardship and management; and a golf and the environment program. Joellen Lampman oversees all aspects
of education and member certification related to these initiatives. These programs create transparency among
Members, allowing Audubon to collect measurable results in order to better comprehend best management practices.
In the golf course program, about 1,800 courses /golf associations have been certified through their application of
environmental planning, wildlife and habitat management, chemical use reduction and safety, water conservation,
water quality management, outreach, and education. These efforts have made substantial impacts on water quality
and quantity, and Audubon applies these practices to the Chesapeake Bay programs it collaborates with.
Zora Lathan completed the panel session by familiarizing the audience with the use
of a social marketing campaign to reach environmental goals. Ms. Lathan began
RainScaping, an environmental partnership for stormwater runoff solutions, comprised
of 38 organizations and government partners. The campaign uses social marketing
to influence behavioral change through encouraging simple solutions such as
redirecting down spouts to flow in gardens, plant rain gardens (less turf grass, more
plant beds), and use of permeable surfaces. The social marketing has encompassed
television, print, web, radio, and outdoor advertising in recreational areas. The
campaign even helped convince the local government to provide tax credits for
rainscaping and $25 plant-a-tree coupons.
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PESP Strategy Workshops
Live Group Moderator: Lee Tanner, ESB
Work Group Moderator: Sherry Glick, ESB
Play Group Moderator: Ed Brandt, ESB
Farm Group Moderator: Diana Home, ESB
The Strategy Workshops provided an opportunity for PESP Members to break out into their respective groups (Live,
Work, Play, and Farm) to develop new or revised strategies around performance measures. Because the concept of
measures is somewhat new for PESP, the time was spent in discussion, rather than actual strategy development. Members
shared their thoughts on issues facing their industries, potential measures to report on, and overall commonalities
among their group.
In the Strategy Workshop for the "Live" group, Members represented local governments, pest
management professionals, and non-profit organizations. During the discussion, Members
expressed their concern that measures can be financially prohibitive and difficult to obtain
based on the company/organization's size. In general, the group felt that EPA needs to
provide clear and concise definitions of proper IPM practices, supplemented by an IPM
plan/template. Members asserted that customer callbacks would be a good measure
because most companies consider a return visit a sign of success. Overall, Members
conceded that the measures are an effective stepping stone to reducing risk to human
health and the environment.
The "Work" group's Strategy Workshop brought together a diverse group of PESP Members,
including the facility services industry, pest management professionals, trade associations,
commercial cleaning industry,schools/universities,communities,and a large chain retailer. Members
identified certain measures that the group as a "whole" could report on, such as environmental health
(e.g., frequency of applications, types of materials used), exposure assessments, wildlife monitoring, pest incidences,
water monitoring, school absenteeism, allergen burden, behavioral effects (e.g., measure of
learning disability), and worker compensation claims (e.g., perceived versus "real"). As a group,
Members concurred that education is one of the most important measures and this could be
identified by the number of brochures, advertisements, and press releases distributed. A
significant aspect that the "Work" group supported was increased collaboration among
group Members, especially with larger companies/organizations that have a substantial
impact on the community.
On the other hand, Members also communicated the difficulty in placing a value on
certain measures such as school absenteeism, indoor air quality and mold health effects.
The group proposed delving deeper into the situation to find value, such as transportation
costs associated with repeat visits to reapply pesticides. Members also inquired about the
number of measures they are required to report on and the level of results necessary.
Members from golf course associations, environmental organizations, and the landscape industry collectively
brainstormed the new measures in the "Play" Strategy Workshop. One measure the group discussed was total active
ingredients used. Measuring the total active ingredient applied may not reflect the total applications, creating
difficulty in obtaining results for this measure. The group recommended measuring elements outside of pesticide use
such as the use of protective gear, how pesticides are stored, mixing and loading areas, buffer zones, and equipment
maintenance. Not all of these practices are regulated, especially on the national scale, thus, reporting on these
measures could universally fix problems across the industry.
During the "Farm" Strategy Workshop, Members from agricultural organizations, extension
centers, food distributing/processing industries, government, and agricultural consultants
expounded on the major pesticide-related issues facing their group. The group decided
that the most substantial issue was efficacy, especially for biopesticide adoption. In
response, Members suggested establishing a collaborative system for disseminating
available information on issues such as technology transfer, efficacy, grower
adoption, and best practices. Also, the group could work together with PESP to
develop a stewardship index that utilizes a whole farm approach of less waste, water
conservation, and energy efficiency. At the end of the workshop, the group indicated
a few measures they could report on including number of pounds of active ingredient
used, disease prevention, pest monitoring, acreage under IPM, and training.
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Listening to Our Members: Live, Work, Play, and Farm
Throughout the meeting, ESB took advantage of the opportunity to listen to Members' comments, especially those
related to measures. The listening sessions provided an excellent forum for the open exchange of thoughts on the
challenges measures pose for all of us. What came out of these discussions was the realization that determining a set
of programmatic measures that are appropriate for everyone is very difficult.
ESB will be presenting a set of general measures that they would like all PESP Members to adopt, as appropriate. To
follow up on what was heard during the conference, during the summer of 2010, ESB will be engaging Members in a
dialogue focused specifically on improving the measures used by PESP Members to evaluate progress. ESB asks that
PESP Members continue to give the issue thought and be ready to explore the topic further with ESB.
Other Opportunities for PESP Members
PESP is only one of EPA's 45 partnership programs. EPA Partnership Programs address a wide
variety of environmental issues by working collaboratively with companies, organizations,
communities, and individuals. During this session, staff from various partnership programs
potentially of interest to PESP Members were stationed around the conference room,
allowing conference participants to interact with them and learn about their programs.
The Partnership Programs that attended the conference include:
Design for the Environment (DfE) - http://www.epa.gov/dfe/
WaterSense - http://www.epa.gov/watersense/
Reduced Risk Pesticide Program - http://www.epa.gov/opprd001/workplan/re-
ducedrisk.htmi
Schools Chemical Cleanout Campaign -http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/partnerships/sc3/
index.htm
Green Power Partnership - http://www.epa.gov/greenpower/
AgriBusiness National Sector (Sector Strategies Division) - http://www.epa.gov/opispdwb/sectorinfo/sector-
profiles/agribusiness.html
EnergyStar - http://www.energystar.gov/
Climate Leaders - http://www.epa.gov/climateleaders/
Combined Heat and Power Partnership - http://www.epa.gov/chp/index.html
Collaboration > Innovation > Healthier Communities and a Healthier Planet
Speaker: Mike McDavit, the Associate Division Director for BPPD
At the close of the conference, Mike McDavit shared his experience with PESP over US©
the years and he acknowledged how the program has been a culmination
of years of hard work. He applauded PESP Members for attending the
conference and thanked them for their invaluable feedback that will
enhance the program. Mr. McDavit quoted the 20th century scholar Mary
Parker Follet, "community is the intermingling that evokes creativity". This
Intermingling provides an opportunity for this community to discover and
create new ideas to move forward with successful IPM practices.
The strength of PESP lies with its Members and the various breakout
sessions exemplified PESP Members' dedication towards environmental
stewardship goals. Plato once wrote, "you cannot step twice into the
same river; for other waters are ever flowing on to you," and the
river we protect today is not the same river of tomorrow. We need
to see PESP as a new or different river and to know we are here ffita(5^?gif3CifeftoteToyfftta
together to mutually reach our environmental stewardship goals.
Environmental stewardship is a community practice for which we are
all responsible. flba
individual
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