BY DAVID DELGADO
Commercial-News
WESTVILLE — Westville school district staff members received awards Wednesday for their efforts to reduce pesticide use.
The recognition was as part of a University of Illinois pilot program to reduce pests and the use of pesticides. Dr. Susan Ratcliffe, coordinator of the integrated pest management program at the university, said Westville schools began the program in partnership with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency through a grant program at the University of Illinois.
Ratcliffe said the district has reduced pesticide applications by 87 percent and benefited economically as a result of not paying for pesticide applications. Due the success of the program, Westville will serve as the model school for Illinois, she added.
The integrated pest management program calls for a seek-and-destroy approach as opposed to an automatic application of pesticide each month. The goal of the project is to limit pest infestation through preventative measures while at the same time limiting pesticide exposure.
“Pesticides are designed to kill things, even in small doses, and we’re trying to minimize the exposure to students, staff, and community,” said Seth Miller, Westville director of operations.
Miller said the district’s partnership with Terminix has been crucial to the success of the project. The pest management experts at Terminix have helped by diagnosing problems facing the district and subsequently educating staff on how to deal with said issues without the use of pesticides.
In other business Wednesday, Westville school board members set junior high graduation for 2 p.m. on May 23 and high school graduation at 4:30 p.m. on May 23.
The next meeting will be at 7:30 p.m. on June 9.
