NEW — 10 a.m. Oct. 12, 2015
Lake Washington School District was one of four school districts honored at a Washington School Integrated Pest Management event Oct. 1.
The four districts were recognized as IPM Star Certified by Washington State University Urban IPM & Pesticide Safety Education.
IPM ensures the use of alternate, nonchemical pest-control methods as the first approach to solve a pest issue on school grounds.
The district earned the certification after passing a rigorous, 37-point inspection conducted by the independent nonprofit IPM Institute of North America.
IPM involves close inspection and monitoring of structures and facilities for conditions conducive to pests — sealing cracks, crevices and avenues of entry for pests to keep them out of buildings. Potential food sources for pests are sealed away or eliminated as well. Pesticides are used only when reasonable, nonchemical methods do not provide adequate control, and then only via least-risk products and formulations.