You recycle and you drive a fuel efficient car. You might even use a rainwater barrel to water your garden. You recycle and you drive a fuel efficient car. You might even use a rainwater barrel to water your garden. There are thousands of ways people are going green these days, but often times those efforts don’t often extend to choosing a pest control company. After all, you want results when it comes to cockroaches, termites, mice, and other pest problems, right?

Fortunately you no longer have to choose between results and going green. Many companies these days are enrolling in the EPA’s Pesticide Environmental Stewardship Program (PESP) to help demonstrate their commitment to protecting our planet. Hopper Environmental Services is onboard too!

What is PESP?

The EPA program was initially established in 1994. It’s a voluntary program, and the goal behind it is to reduce the risk of damage from pesticides in homes and businesses as well as in agricultural settings. The EPA works with companies like Hopper Environmental Services every day to help reduce any risks associated with the use of the most common pesticides.

How Does It Work?

Companies like Hopper work to adopt the newest innovative and alternative practices in the pest control industry so that your primary line of defense against problem pests is no longer deadly pesticides. Instead, using strategies like Integrated Pest Management, Hopper works to inform customers about the dangers of pests and find eco-friendly ways of dealing with them as a first line of defense.

The EPA helps by publishing standards for Integrated Pest Management services and other new technologies as well as offering assistance as pest control companies like Hopper move toward eco-friendly control methods.

The EPA also helps to increase public understanding of the problem surrounding pest control as well as the benefits of today’s newest pest control methods.

What is Integrated Pest Management?

A key facet of the EPA program is integrated pest management, and at the outset, a term like that one could seem confusing. It’s really pretty simple, though. The reality is that pesticides are a very powerful way to get rid of pest problems, but there have always been some known risks associated with them. IPM addresses those risks.

By taking the information we know about the life cycle of the pests you’re dealing with and how they interact with the environment, your pest management professional works to find the least hazardous, yet most effective way of dealing with those pests. In some cases, careful use of a pesticide may become a necessity, but there are often other methods employed first. In most cases, pest control prevention is the real focus.

For example, if you have areas of your home that make it easy for rodents to enter, your exterminator might help you seal those areas, reduce clutter, or even help avoid standing water that may attract them it the first place.

Integrated Pest Management looks at all of the options on the table, and takes the ones that will eliminate the problem without harming the environment.

Being pest smart has already helped thousands of homeowners and businesses get just a bit greener when they call an exterminator, and it can help you too!

For more information, contact Hopper Environmental Services, your PESP certified Mountain Home pest control company.