REDUCING PEST INFESTATIONS AND INSECTICIDE RESIDUES IN LOW INCOME HOUSING

Bed bugs and cockroaches are common pests in apartment buildings. Low income communities suffer disproportionally much higher infestations. Pest infestations reduce the quality of life, cause significant economic loss, and/or produce allergens that are strong asthma triggers. Furthermore, insecticide applications by residents and professionals during pest control introduce additional health risks to the inhabitants. The prevalence of pest infestations in low income homes reveals an urgent need for more effective and safer pest management programs. Our objectives for this study are to: 1) design, implement, and evaluate the cost and effectiveness of a building-wide integrated pest management program (IPM) for low income housing; 2) measure the impact of IPM implementation on residents' behavior towards pests and pest control; 3) measure the impact of IPM implementation on indoor insecticide residue levels; 4) demonstrate the IPM model in another low income community. We will educate and interview all residents and housing staff, provide cost-effective treatments, collect floor wipe samples at 0 and 12 month to analyze changes in insecticide residue levels, and monitor pest populations for 12 months in a low income community. The IPM program will be replicated in a second community based on research findings. The goal is to increase residents and housing staff's knowledge on pests and pest management, reduce pest infestations, insecticide usage, and insecticide residues in homes and achieve sustainable pest control.