CITY OF IRVINE
Integrated Pest Management Program
2021 Annual Report
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Introduction
The City of Irvine continues to implement the Public Works Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program adopted by the City Council in February 2016. This IPM policy sets forth the following goals:
Citywide Pest Management Guiding Principles
• Use of organic pesticides in all City properties.
• Limit exposure to any pesticides where children and the general public congregate.
• Incorporate additional guidance on use of pesticides for City rights of way, facilities, and other properties , as reflected in the February 23, 2016, staff report.
• Use Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Level pesticides in a targeted manner, and only if deemed necessary to protect public health and economic loss by a licensed pest control advisor and City staff, when pests cannot be managed by other methods.
The City’s comprehensive program prioritizes non-chemical pest control methods and is committed to manage municipal landscapes and parks in this most responsible way.
The 2021 IPM annual report summarizes program activities and application data for the year. The IPM p rogram applies to all City departments, although the majority of pest management responsibilities are under the guidance of the Public Works Landscape Division.
Program Components
The City of Irvine IPM Policy promotes environmentally sensitive pest management practices while preserving assets, protecting the health and safety of the public, and City employees. All costs and impacts associated with pesticide use, including community and environmental health, are considered.
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IPM is a decision-making process for managing pests. A monitoring system is utilized to determine pest levels and tolerance thresholds. It combines biological, cultural, physical, and chemical tools to minimize health, environmental, and financial risks. The monitoring system requires extensive knowledge about pests, such as infestation thresholds, life histories, environmental requirements, and natural enemies to compliment and facilitate control of pests.
As part of an IPM program, pesticides may be used when pest thresholds get too high.
A pesticide is any substance, or the mixture of substances, used for defoliating plants, regulating plant growth, or for preventing, destroying, repelling, or mitigating any pest, which may be detrimental to vegetation, humans, or animals. Regardless of the pesticide being organic or synthetic, the goal is to rid a pest and caution should be taken when applying the product.
To ensure the IPM program continues to be an adequate tool to meet the City’s pest challenges while upholding the program goals adopted by the City Council, staff shall continuously examine and evaluate components of the program ’s effectiveness. In addition, all contractors that apply pesticides on the City’s behalf are required to adhere to the IPM Policy.
Alternative Pest Control Methods for Landscape Maintenance The Public Works and Transportation Department’s Landscape Division employs alternative methods for weed control, such as using steam and mechanical removal. As budget allowed, Fraze mowing was performed in conjunction with big roll sod installations to combat the annual weed challenges on the athletic fields. The process is expensive and labor intensive, but it is an alternative approach toward keeping athletic fields safe and playable.
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Example of Fraze mowing operation
Other non-pesticide weed control measures include applying three inches of mulch in landscape planter areas to minimize weed growth. City landscape maintenance contractors in City parks and public right -of-ways perform alternati ve methods . City contract services manual ly remove cattails in drainage facilities to ensure proper water flow. In addition, Smart Irrigation Controllers apply the proper amount of water to City landscapes, which minimizes disease and weed growth, thus limiting pesticide use.
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Example of a landscape contractor using steam to eradicate weeds in hardscapes .
The City is resp onsible for maintenance of 100 acres of fuel modification zones in the Village of Turtle Rock where goats were used for vegetation management. The use of goats demonstrates an alternate method to manage property without pesticides or contract labor. In 2021 during the pandemic, it was difficult to manage the goat’s grazing in a safe manner due to the daily, heavily visited open space by the public . The goats became an attraction that led to many complaint calls from nearby residents due to the excessive traffic in their neighborhoods. In addit ion, a lack of normal rainfall led to reduced favorable vegetation for the goats to feed on. Therefore, staff had to employ flail mowing to properly finish the job for Orange County Fire Authority approval.
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Example of goats performing weed abatement in the City’s open space.
The Landscape Division also used biological control to reduce pest populations.
Biological control uses organisms often referred to as beneficials, natural enemies , or biocontrols. The biological controls act to keep pest populations low enough to prevent significant economic damage. The most common organism types used for biological control in landscapes to combat pest populations are predators and parasites. In 2021, nearly 700,000 beneficial insects were released in the parks and streetscapes to combat destructive pests, instead of relying on pesticides.
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Example of beneficial insects about to be released in a City park.
Lastly, Landscape modification and proper sanitation continues to be an effective non- chemical approach to rodent management. By removing plants away from buildings, removing understory vegetation and using c losed trashcan receptacles , rodent populations are manageable.
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Example of raising shrub canopies to reduce covered habitat for rodents.
Alternative Pest Control Methods for Public Facilities Maintenance The Facilities Maintenance Division of Public Works has implemented an integrated and tiered approach to manage pests in compliance with the City’s IPM policy. Facilities Maintenance Staff perform routine inspections to identify, report, and manage pest activity. Compliance has been achieved using monthly services provided by the City’s existing pest control contractors and ongoing staff training. Staff communicates frequently with building occupants to identify pest activity and trends. Staff works closely with facility operators to improve food storage, sanitation, and waste management practices.
Exclusion methods and barriers have been deployed at several City facilities to minimize pest intrusions and the Staff is dedicating additional time to pest management research, planning and response.
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Staff addressed 96 requests for pest control service during the 2021 calendar year , an increase from 47 requests in 2020. Requests to address pest issues are tracked and logged using the division work order system (Lucity).
Staff performs facility inspections to identify and eliminate mosquito- breeding habitats.
Staff has been trained on best practices to control mosquitos around storage yards and facilities. During the latter part of the rainy season, staff insp ects outdoor storage areas to correct situations where rainwater is trapped in containers or equipment. Staff used adhesive paper traps to control flying insects that manage to reach the interior of the facilities. Staff is documenting preventive pest -related inspections, field reports, and service requests using the division work order system (Lucity). Improvements in tracking and managing pest -related requests and complaints are being made continually in the software and the process of issuing work orders to the pest control contractor.
The Landscape Division works closely with Facilities Maintenance to reduce the density of foliage around facilities to minimize pest activity. The effectiveness of the modified program has provided control of the rodents in most cases. The program also places an emphasis on controlling rodent, roach, and ant activity at facilities routinely serving food to the public.
Due to limited availability of compliant insecticides and rodenticides, behavioral and operational changes play a key role in maintaining tolerable pest control under the IPM Policy.
The overall pest program in Facilities Maintenance focuses towards improving seasonal planning, preventive control measures, monitoring, and reporting.
Alternative Pest Control Methods for Open Space Maintenance The Irvine Ranch Conservancy (IRC) has incorporated the City’s IPM policy i nto its maintenance protocols. No pesticides were applied to control invasive species in 2021; only manual methods were used. Most annual species , including Sahara mustard and stinknet, were pulled by hand. Most perennial species cannot be controlled with organic herbicides and must be dug out of the ground. In particular, mature artichoke thistle is Integrated Pest Management Program 2021 Annual Report
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nearly impossible to hand pull and must be removed by shovel in an attempt to destroy the tap root and prevent seeding. The magnitude and threat of the North African knapweed population necessitated mechanical cutting followed by bagging and removal of mature seed.
Pesticide Usage
The City’s contractors are all lic ensed by the State of California to use organic and synthetic pesticides, as required by their contracts with the City. As the party responsible to the State for the application for any pesticide, the City’s maintenance contr actors researched available org anic products approved for use in the State of California. All products used were reviewed by the City’s Maintenance Superintendents or Department Managers and approved prior to use. Due to the high acidity of the organic weed control products, applicators must use protective equipment to shield their eyes and skin which can sometimes give the public the perception the pesticide being applied is toxic.
Table 1, Appendix 1 provides the active ingredient for the approve d organic pesticides used in 2021.
Pesticides Usage in Parks and Public Facilities for Weed Control Since the IPM Policy implementation, the City has continued the practice of not using “Speedzone” (2, 4-D) and “Round-Up” (glyphosate) weed killers. With 62 parks and the Great Park, the use of organic products were necessary to keep up with effective weed control in the parks. At the Great Park , synthetic herbicides were used to kill invading Bermuda grass in the synthetic soccer fields and to control bindweed in planters. A synthetic herbicide application was applied at Hicks Canyon Community Park to control goosegrass from infesting the newly sodded soccer fields.
In 2020, it was noted on the athletic fields of an increased growth of goosegrass and crabgrass so staff worked with the city contractor to apply an organic pre- emergent product called corn gluten in 2021. The product was difficult to find and required a high use rate per field. The parks where the product was applied demonstrated n o decrease Integrated Pest Management Program 2021 Annual Report
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in weed infestation and the athletic fields became infested with goosegrass and crabgrass causing unsafe and unsightly fields. Staff plans to apply a synthetic pre -emergent in 2022 to control the germination of these problematic weeds since there is no effective organic product. This application will comply with the IPM requirements of using the least toxic product that is not on the California Proposition 65 list which are chemicals known to the State to cause cancer. The picture below demonstrates the extent of the weed infestation on city fields that mechanical removal and organic products were deemed as unsuccessful in control.
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Pesticides Usage in Parks and Public Facilities for Insect Control Fire ants continue to be a problem throughout city parks. In 2021, there were 53 work requests for fire ants. The use of the organic product Entrust provided adequate control after three consecutive daily treatments if the fire ants were detected early on in mound formation. The three consec utive treatments are labor intensive and costly , but the practice is an example of the city’s commitment to the organic first approach to pest management. For large scale infestations, staff will continue to work with Orange County Vector Control to apply synthetic baits to protect the public health. No applications were necessary in 2021.
Pesticides Usage in Parks and Public Facilities for Rodent Control In 2021, work orders for gophers increased from 94 to 124 work requests. The organic products ContraPest and Terad3 were used to provide adequate control for rodents.
Gopher X Extermination Machine and IGI Carbon Dioxide Liquid were used to control gophers. IGI Carbon Dioxide Liquid was the preference by the pest control contractor.
Example of a City pest control contractor using the ICI Carbon Dioxide
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Pesticides Usage in Parks and Public Facilities for Disease Control At the Orange County Great Park, organic fungicides are used in combination with synthetic fungicides to provide professional quality athletic fields at the Soccer Complex Stadium and Baseball Complex Stadium.
1 6
49 69
52 17
31 69
94 85
46 32
97 90
49 1
0 1
1 5
YEAR 2017
YEAR 2018
YEAR 2019
YEAR 2020
YEAR 2021
Parks and Facilities
Pest Control Work Orders
Fire Ants Gophers Bees Ground Squirrels
The graph details the pest activity in parks over the last five years.
Table 2, Appendix 1 shows the pesticide usage in parks since 2016 for weeds, algae and disease control. Tables 3 and 4, Appendix 1 highlight the number of pesticides used for rodent and insect control since 2016.
Pesticides Usage in the Right of Way for Weed Control
For right-of-way weed control, the City’s landscape maintenance contractors were effective at controlling a majority of the weeds using organic products. For approximately 100 acres of no n-landscaped areas (concrete medians and sidewalks), biweekly Integrated Pest Management Program 2021 Annual Report
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treatments of Suppress EC at the 9 percent concentration provided satisfactory control .
Suppress EC works best on newly emerged weeds and at temperatures greater than 60 degrees; when the water in the spray tank had a neutral to slightly acidic pH before the addition of Suppress EC.
For approximately 933 acres of landscaped medians and parkways , manual hand weeding and organic herbicides still remains the primary practice. The City’s contractors have shown a preference to Suppress EC compared to the other products . Table 5, Appendix 1, lists the pesticides used to control weeds in the right-of-way since 2016.
The presence of perennial weeds, nutsedge, field bindweed, and Bermuda grass equates to a small percentage of the weed population not successfully controlled by the current maintenance practice. These weeds have extensive vegetative root systems that require systemic activity to control not only the top growth, but the aggressive underground roots as well. The use of selective and systemic synthetic products to adequately control perennial weeds were applied in 2021 in limited areas not readily accessible to the public, primarily street medians. Selective and systemic weed killer products only affect the weed and not the desirable plant material surrounding the weed. The weed killer enters the plant through the leaf and moves throughout the weed for complete eradication. Organic products available for use at this time are neither selective nor systemic. The organic products burn down all foliage they come in contact with, including desirable plants.
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Example of an organic herbicide application by the City’s landscape contractor.
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Pesticides Usage in the Right of Way for Insect Control Insect work requests are difficult to manage with repeat organic treatments due to the vastness of the citywide right of way landscaping exceeding 900 acres. This has modified the Landscape Division’s practice to use synthetic products in medians and areas where no public interacts to control the pests more effectively without additional required treatments. This is es pecially targeted for ant control since they have a propensity to invade irrigation controller cabinets and cause electrical problems.
Pesticides Usage in the Right of Way for Rodent Control This past year, there were 54 work orders for gopher s which is a decrease from the previous year of 176. The decrease in work orders can be attributed to the modified practice to use synthetic products in medians and areas where no public interacts to control the pests more effectively without the additional required treatments needed with organic products . The graph below demonstrates the pest activity the city has been experiencing the last five years.
3 21
27 54
3 45
53 95
176
54 196
142
163
173
47 1
4 7
8 3
YEAR 2017
YEAR 2018
YEAR 2019
YEAR 2020
YEAR 2021
Right of Way
Pest Control Work Orders
Fire Ants Gophers Bees Ground Squirrels
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IPM Program Cost Impacts
All City landscape maintenance contracts provide the necessary contract staff and organic products to fulfill the mission of an organic first approach to pest management .
Alternative methods and organic pesticides require the use of more labor and product, and an increase in the frequency of applications to provide a similar result as compared to past pesticide practices. Staff estimates the budget impact for 2021 at approximately 10 percent of the Division’s $28 million annual allocation. This impact is associated primarily with the higher cost of organic materials as well as the more labor intensive methods being implemented. It should be noted that minimum wage has increased from $11.00 per hour in 2018 to $15.00 per hour by 2022, which has an increasing impact to the program’s cost.
The Citywide Pest Management Guiding Principles have been successful for the City of Irvine because of our commitment to provide safe, non-toxic landscapes for the residents as the primary treatment . Though there is still a need for synthetic pesticides in the program, it is only for a small percentage of pests not controlled. After five years, organic products have demonstrated they can be utilized as part of an effective pest control program. The ability to operate solely with organic products has not been possible to maintain the same high- quality landscape and athletic fields prior to the policy implementation. With that said, the organic first approach significantly reduces the city’s reliance on synthetic products specifically in the areas that the public uses, such as parks.
The feedback from residents has been overwhelmingly positive for the organic first approach and we expect continued success using the tiered approach of the City’s Integrated Pest Management Policy. Even with the success of the program, Cit y staff will continue to evaluate new non-toxic options and refine practices to provide the most effective, non-toxic solution to pests in the landscape, facilities and open space.
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Appendix 1
TABLE 1
ORGANIC PESTICIDES USED IN 2021
PRODUCT ACTIVE INGREDIENT TARGET PEST EPA
CATEGORY
Finalsan Ammoniated soap of fatty
acids Weeds Warning
Suppress EC Caprylic acid Weeds Warning
Scythe Pelargonic acid Weeds Warning
Whack Out
Weeds
Peppermint oil, potassium
sorbate and sodium chloride Weeds Caution
Axxe Ammonium Nonanoate Weeds Warning
Terad3 Blox Cholecalciferol Rodents Caution
ContraPest
4-Vinylcyclohexene diepoxide-
0.09604%
Triptolide- 0.00118%
Rodents Caution
ICI Carbon
Dioxide Liquid Carbon Dioxide Gophers N/A
Eco Via EC Thyme oil, rosemary oil, 2
phenethyl proprionate Insects Caution
Entrust SC Spinosad A & B Insects Caution
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*Whack Out Weeds and Suppress are an organic weed killer product.
TABLE 2
CITY OF IRVINE PESTICIDE USAGE SUMMARY
COMMUNITY AND NEIGHBORHOOD PARKS
PRODUCT PEST TOTAL USE
IN 2017
TOTAL USE
IN 2018
TOTAL USE
IN 2019
TOTAL USE
IN 2020
TOTAL USE
IN 2021
Whack Out
Weeds* Weeds 0 0 0 18,779 oz. 11,941 oz.
Glyphosate 4
Plus Weeds 0 0 0 0 0
Round Up
Custom Weeds 0 0 0 0 0
Speed Zone Weeds 0 0 0 0 0
Suppress* Weeds 0 0 0 0 3,019 oz.
Revolver Weeds 0 0 0 0 220 oz.
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*Actinovate and Companion Maxx are organic products for disease control. Phycomycin, an organic product for control of algae in the ponds and basins. Finalsan, Suppress EC and Scythe are organic weed killer products.
TABLE 2
CITY OF IRVINE PESTICIDE USAGE SUMMARY
ORANGE COUNTY GREAT PARK
PRODUCT PEST TOTAL USE
IN 2017
TOTAL USE
IN 2018
TOTAL USE
IN 2019
TOTAL USE
IN 2020
TOTAL USE
IN 2021
Actinovate* Disease 0 0 0 1,422 oz. 252 oz.
Companion Maxx* Disease 0 0 0 10,304 oz. 2,800 oz.
Insignia SC Disease 0 0 0 200 oz. 0
Banner Max II Disease 0 0 0 329.5 oz. 0
Clearys 3336F Disease 0 0 0 1,395 oz. 2,000 oz.
Heritage TL Disease 0 0 0 0 400 oz.
Chipco Signature Disease 0 0 0 0 1,408 oz.
Glyphosate 4 Plus Weeds 0 0 0 0 0
Arrow 2 EC Weeds 0 0 0 2,830 oz. 3,763 oz.
Sedgehammer Weeds 0 0 0 0.14 oz. 0.86 oz.
Speed Zone Weeds 0 0 0 0 0
Phycomycin* Algae 13,200 oz. 9,200 oz. 3,200 oz. 12,000oz. 8,800 oz.
Finalsan* Weeds 1,616 oz. 16,097oz. 18,304oz. 26,428oz. 20,627 oz.
Suppress EC* Weeds 1,048 oz. 311,204 oz. 30,781 oz. 30,312oz. 18,203 oz.
Scythe* Weeds 0 0 0 31,416oz. 17,079 oz.
Power Zone Weeds 0 0 0 0 352.5 oz.
Barricade 4FL Weeds 0 0 0 0 399 oz.
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TABLE 3
CITY OF IRVINE PESTICIDE USAGE SUMMARY
CITYWIDE – RODENTS
PRODUCT PEST TOTAL USE
IN 2017
TOTAL USE
IN 2018
TOTAL USE
IN 2019
TOTAL USE
IN 2020
TOTAL USE
IN 2021
SYNTHETICS
Fumitoxin Tablets Rodent 0 64 tablets 93 tablets 378 tablets 0 Rozol Vole Rodent 0 6 lb. 0 0 0
Maki Mini Rodent 0 2.25 lb. 0 0 0
Avalon Strychnine Rodent 0 1 lb. 0 0.25 lb. 0
ORGANICS
Rat X Rodent 126.34 lb. 0 0 0 0
Uncle Ian’s Gopher
Repellant Rodent 997.93 lb. 84.25 lb. 32.5 lb. 10 lb. 0 Repels-All Rodent 0 6 0 0 2 lb.
ICI Carbon Dioxide Rodent 0 0 45 lb. 84 lb. 94.75 lb.
ContraPest Rodent 0 0 10.08 oz. 108.24 oz. 498 oz.
Terad3 Blox Rodent 0 48.01 lb. 37.86 lb. 127 lb. 196.2 lb.
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TABLE 3
CITY OF IRVINE PESTICIDE USAGE SUMMARY
CITYWIDE – INSECTS
PRODUCT PEST TOTAL USE
IN 2017
TOTAL USE
IN 2018
TOTAL USE
IN 2019
TOTAL USE
IN 2020
TOTAL USE
IN 2021
SYNTHETICS
Transport
GHP Insects 0 0.3 oz. 0 0 0
P.I. Contact Insects 0 8 oz. 5 oz. 0 0
ORGANICS
Essentria IC3 Insects 22,696 oz. 20,826 oz. 0 0 0
EcoEXEMPT Insects 591 oz. 84.25 oz. 0 0 0
EcoVia Insects 121.60 oz. 379.21 oz. 183.75 oz. 444 oz. 157.5 oz.
WHY Spray Insects 2,268 oz. 71 oz. 0 0 0
Entrust SC Insects 0 2.79 oz. 392 oz. 697 oz. 228.13 oz.
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TABLE 4
RIGHT OF WAY PESTICIDE USAGE
PRODUCT PEST
TOTAL
USE IN
2017
TOTAL
USE IN
2018
TOTAL
USE IN
2019
TOTAL
USE IN
2020
TOTAL
USE IN
2021
Round Up Weeds 0 0 0 0 0
Arrow 2EC Bermuda grass 0 0 3,017 oz. 218 oz. 2,488 oz.
Speed Zone Turf Weeds 0 0 0 0 0
Turflon Ester Bindweed 0 700 oz. 0 0 0
Sedge Hammer Nutsedge 0 4.59 oz. 20.52 oz. 0.3 oz. 0
Fusilade Bermuda grass 0 0 0 22 oz. 158 oz.
Reward Cattails 0 0 0 512 oz. 864 oz.
Avenger Weeds 512 oz. 0 0 0 0
Scythe Weeds 10,748 oz. 0 11,475 oz. 7,373 oz. 4950 oz.
Suppress EC Weeds 223,484 oz. 311,204
oz.
439,502
oz. 486,872 oz. 317,833
oz.
Finalsan Weeds 1,700 oz. 16,097 oz. 12,282 oz. 64,670 oz. 65,802 oz.
Weed Pharm Weeds 327,879 oz. 77,952 oz. 0 0 0
Fiesta Weeds 1,812 oz. 144 oz. 0 0 0
PreEmerge Weeds 768 oz. 0 0 0 0
Weed Slayer A Weeds 0 140 oz. 0 0 0
Weed Slayer B Weeds 0 140 oz. 0 0 0
Axxe Weeds 0 0 0 0 5,376 oz.
Poast Weeds 0 0 0 0 5,857 oz.
Vanquish Weeds 0 0 0 0 1,975 oz.
Clash Weeds 0 0 0 0 1,833 oz.