North Seattle College
OP-9: Integrated Pest Management

North Seattle Community College has sixty-five acres of ecologically diverse campus. To help with the management of the grounds they are divided into three zones. Zone 1 can be defined as core campus. Zone 2 is parking and driveways. Zone 3 is the Campus Greenbelt. Our four tiered approach to pest management is slightly different for each zone. Action Thresholds Zone 1 Action Threshold: Zone 1 has the lowest action threshold as it is most used by staff, students and faculty. Safety, appearance, type of pest and the potential of that pest to spread are the conditions considered in Zone 1. We do seasonal lookout for known pests of known host plants within this Zone. Regarding appearances, damage to twenty percent of plant triggers a close monitor and assessed response; damage to forty percent of plant triggers a “treat or remove” response. Safety thresholds are proximity driven. A ground bee nest near a classroom door is sprayed to kill to protect the daily passage of potentially allergic students by hive site: paper wasp nests, 25 feet above in tree branches will be left alone since the paper wasps come and go far enough above to avoid being a threat . Zone 2 Action Threshold: Zone 2 Action Thresholds are higher for appearances since people are less likely to notice damage as they drive along roads and through lots. Safety, type of pest and potential for spread also figure into monitoring and assessment leading to action. Safety is as high an order for action in both Zone 1 and Zone 2 due to the potential for personal and or property damage if an unsafe condition persists. Zone 3 Action Threshold: Zone 3 has the highest action threshold as it encompasses the most remote parts of campus, is the least populated part of the campus, and has limited, trail based circulation patterns. With the exception of noxious weeds, pest damage has no action threshold since the forest pests and predators are allowed to fluctuate as naturally as possible. Safety thresholds exist according to proximity to the edge of the Greenbelt where cars may park and proximity to trails where people may walk) Monitor and Identify Pests The grounds crew maintains a list of Historically Significant Pests including subsets of insects, weeds, diseases and animals (birds, mammals, reptiles, and fish.) Zone 1 Monitoring: By referring to the list, seasonal awareness and watch for signs and symptoms takes place. Uncharacteristic damage is noted and researched and additions to the list are made as a result. Often, “treatment” is in the form of education of the affected human population – predicting the expected rise and fall of a pest population, the natural controls that exist and the consequences and effectiveness of a range of physical and chemical control actions. Zone 2 Monitoring: Similar to Zone 1, Zone 2 monitoring is informed by the campus list of historically significant pests, in association with issues of safety, appearances and virulence or tendency to lead to explosive spread of the pest. Zone 3 Monitoring: Zone 3 is monitored primarily for noxious weeds and pest based safety conditions proximate to trails through and parking areas abutting the Greenbelt.. Prevention The Historically Significant Pest list includes pest specific continua from methods of prevention through cultural, physical and chemical control methods. Zone 1 Prevention: Heavy reliance on removal of susceptible host plants, planting native and pest resistant species, mulching, manual weeding and education to inform campus community about pest lifecycles and celebrate predator contributions to cut chemical application to a minimum. Zone 2 Prevention: Mulching beds and planting pest resistant species that respond well to the presence of wind stress, reflected heat and limited water make up the primary strategies. Manual weeding timed to prevent seed dispersal is also on the list of preventative strategies. Zone 3 Prevention: Planting native and native climate compatible, pest resistant species and removal of noxious weeds prior to seed dispersal are the primary strategies employed in Zone 3. Plant s are also chosen to support a broad spectrum of both resident and seasonal bird species that predate pest insects and act to contain the size of resident urban rodent species. Native hawks, owls and bats are considered desirable assets to our pest management program. Control We simply do not rely on broadcast sprays of non-specific insecticides under any conditions. We apply targeted applications of insecticides to stinging insect nests only if there is a demonstrable proximity issue and a danger of allergic individuals being stung We have fenced off a cluster of planted containers where we could direct foot traffic around a ground bee hive in one container.