Is There a Boom Or Bust Coming For Natural Pest Control?

The world is going green. "Green" is the color of ecological concern, the impetus that drives cutting-edge technology, the buzz word from the socially conscious. Problem for the environment as well as man's impact on it is bringing a lot of new products to market, and pest control isn't any exception. Environmentally-friendly pest control providers are growing in recognition, particularly in the commercial field. Even eco-savvy residential individuals are asking about organic alternatives to traditional pesticides, but their ardor often cools down when confronted with the 10% in order to 20% cost differential and more time treatment times, sometimes several weeks.

The raising of America's ecological consciousness, coupled with more and more stringent federal regulations governing traditional chemical substance pesticides, appears to be shifting the pest control sector's focus to Incorporated Pest Management (IPM) techniques. IPM is considered not only safer for the environment, but safer for people, pets as well as secondary scavengers such as owls. Associated with 378 pest management companies interviewed in 2008 by Pest Control Technology journal, two-thirds said they provided IPM services of some sort.

Instead of lacing insect sites with a toxic cocktail of powerful insecticides designed to kill, IPM focuses on environmentally-friendly prevention techniques designed to keep pests out. While low- or no-toxicity products may also be used to encourage pests to pack their own bags, elimination as well as control efforts concentrate on finding and getting rid of the causes of infestation: entry ways, attractants, harborage and food.

Especially popular with schools and nursing homes charged with guarding the health of the nation's youngest and oldest citizens, those at finest risk from dangerous chemicals, IPM is getting the attention of hotels, office buildings, apartment complexes and other commercial enterprises, as well as eco-conscious residential clients. Driven in equal parts by environmental concerns and health hazard fears, interest in IPM is actually bringing a host of new environmentally-friendly pest management products -- both high- and low-tech -- to market.

"Probably the best product out there is really a door sweep," confided Tom Green, leader of the Integrated Bug control Institute of North America, a non-profit organization which certifies green exterminating companies. In an Connected Press interview posted on MSNBC on the internet last April, Green explained, "A mouse can squeeze through a hole the size of a pencil diameter. So if you've got a quarter-inch gap underneath you, as far as a mouse is concerned, there's no doorway there at all.Inch Cockroaches can slither via an one-eighth inch crevice.

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