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HomeMy WebLinkAboutHandout WIP of 04/24/02~, f" ~~ WEEKLY INFORMATION PACKET .•-- ,,,,, TO: Mayor and Members of City Council FROM: Ronald A Secnst, City Manager Chnstme Andersen, Deputy Crty Manager for Envuonmental Serv~ces Mike Weil, Duector, Environmental Affazrs Ahce Guthne, Crty IPM Coordinator, Environmental Affairs DATE: Apnl 24, 2002 SUBJECT: InFormation Item: IPM Policy Update and Identification of Activities Impacted by Pesticide Application Moratorium l~l~ ~ s IPM Policy Update Crty staff has reviewed and updated the City's Integrated Pest Management Policy to address issues and concems razsed m the Environmental Management Audrt in 2001 The updated policy is mcluded as Attachment II It mcludes the followmg items > The role of the City IPM Coordmator - Specific reportmg responsibihhes ~ Deadl~nes for complerion of departmental IPM Plans ~ - Department head approvals for usmg EPA Toxicity Category I& II chemicals ~ - Stronger requirements for city contractors City Council Motion - April 16, 2002 Dunng the City Counc~l meehng, Council approved the followmg motion Text of motion Counctlmember Morzel moved, seconded by Havltck, to place a morator:um on the ground appkcahon of peshcrdes and herbrcrdes withrn 50 ft of creek corndors and rn the C~vtc Comples (bounded by 9th and 13th and Arapahoe and Canyon) unttl the IPM update comes back to Councrl on June 4th The modon carned 8 1, Riggle opposed Clarzficaaon was offered that the intent was no! to tnclude open space areas outszde the crry bmds The pest issues that city staff deals with aze complex and IPM methods vary depending on the pest, its locahon and the spec~fic environmental condihons City staFf has reviewed the morion placmg a moratonum on the ground apphcation of pesricides and herb~c~des withm 50 fr of creek corndors and m the Civic Complex (bounded by 9th and 13th and Arapahoe and Canyon) unt~l the IPM update comes back to Council on June 4~' and evaluated potenhal pesricide applicarions that would be ~mpacted Staff is mterprehng the City Council motion to mclude creeks, ponds, wetlands and ma~or irngation drtches withm the city limrts and on city-owned lands, mcludmg open space and other natural lands Staff ~s mcluding only ground applicaUOns of pesticides, not soil or trunk '"- 1 e...- m~ections, cut-stump treatments or aenal spraymg of trees Staff is not mcludmg dry lateral '~ ditches, dry wetlands, dry dramages or dry imgarion ponds '•' Based on this evaluation of locations within the parameters ojt/ie moratorium, staff has asked for approval from the Crty Manager to treat the locations listed below. Noxious weed species are listed m bold Pesticides listed by name are descnbed m Attachment I Civ~c Center Complex Area 1 Ant problems m downtown city buildmgs with ant traps 2 Rats along Boulder Creek with baits and traps Eaton Park Wetland I Teasel and Canada thistle wrth Escort or Telar. The treatment will be done m con~unchon wrth Boulder County treahng the same weeds on adjacent property Smce this is an abnormally dry year and the weeds are under stress, the treatment should be highly effective The treatments would be broadcast apphcaUon by a hcensed pesticide apphcator Tom Watson Park 1 Potential treatment of locker rooms and rest rooms for mice infestation with bart and traps Staff h~res a contractor to momtor for the presence of mice, evaluate and treat if necessary Door sweeps were mstalled last yeaz, which exclude some mice, reducmg the need for other controls 2 A contractor wiil be re-surfacmg the basketball court, requinng some herbicide treatment for ~ weeds The date of th~s ~ob isn't certain, but may be before June 4 e..+ Open Space areas in or ad~acent to city l~m~ts 1 Diffuse knapweed, Canada thistle, perennial pepperweed and Scotch thistle m the Sawhill Ponds azea with Telaz, Transline or Tordon Z Teasel, diffuse knapweed and Canada thistle with Transhne as a wick apphcation m the Burke I npanan azea neaz BaseLne and Cherryvale roads 3 Diffuse knapweed, sulfur cinquefoil, bouncingbet, Swtch thistle, Canada thistle, perennial pepperweed, teasel and perenmal pea on the NIST property with erther Telaz, Translme or Tordon. The azeas hsted above aze the ones that fall under the parameters of the Crty Council morion Please contact Christine Andersen at 441-3204 if there are council concerns with tl:e treatments described above. There aze other areas outside the scope of the moratorium where staff will be conductmg chemical pest control before the June 4 City Council meet~ng and w~shes to advise Council City staff will be proceedmg wrth the followmg weed and msect control measures C~vic Center Plaza, Mam Library Pazkmg Lot and Pearl Street Mall Crty Forestry staff is concerned about the health of the trees, which are under stress due to their growmg locarion Many are shll recovenng from prev~ous storm damage The ash trees are therefore prone to ,,~, attack from lilac/ash borer and could also be attacked by the ash sawfly Spider mrtes are always ,r.. a problem on the honeylocust m hot dry years ~... 1 Lilac/ash borers attack ash trees under stress and cause gougmg wounds that lead to a declme m health and poss~ble structural problems later on Tradihonally city contractors have done an aenal spray of permethnn, an EPA Tox~city Category III, on the ash trees for lilac/ash borer Permethnn is effective agamst the borers, but staff ts plamm~g to also try Neem this year Dr Whitney Cranshaw, CSU Entomolog~st, does believe it will work well but its effectiveness agamst borers is miknown Neem is approved for use on organic crops because it is a natural denvahve from the seeds of the Neem tree. Its EPA Toxicity Category is II, based on the eye sensitivity that applicators can have if they do not wear proper eye safety equipment The oral LD50 for Neem ~s a Toxicity Level IV, the same as soap. Based on the other £actors for Neem, staff recommends trymg this pestic~de 2 If necessary, staff will also have contractors aenally spray M-Pede, an msechcidal soap, on the ash trees for ash sawfly Foresuy staff momtors sawfly populahons during feedmg and only sprays if sawfly populations are high enough to cause ma~or defoliat~on of the trees Last yeaz, rt was not necessary to spray the ash trees on Pearl St Mall due to the presence of a natural predator, but trees at seven pazk srtes were treated for as}~ sawfly. If spraymg is necessary, Forestry staff will do all pre-apphcation poshng and the contractor will do the post-apphcahon postmg. 3. A c~ty contractor ~s scheduled to do trunk m~ect~ons of Greyhound (abamectin), a Toxicity Category II msechcide, on the honeylocust trees on Pearl St Mali for spider mite control Spider mites can completely defoliate the honeylocust trees m hot dry years Typically the ~ trunk m~ections aze done after the trees leaf out fully (late May-early June) to help in the ,~ uptake of the product. There is no public contact with the pesticide because rt is mjected directly mto the trunk The contractor will do the appropnate post-applicahon postmg Open Space vanous locahons Staff will be conducring "cut-stump" treatments on several woody weed species, mcluding Russian olive, Chinese elm and buckthorn Trees aze cut down with a cham saw and Round-up ~s appl~ed with a brush to the cambmm layer of the stump City staff contmues to use an mtegrated approach to weed management, with chemical control as a tool Staff is trymg `Bum-Up", a product which contams hort~cultural strength vmegar with yucca root as a surfactant, as a replacement for Round-up for weed control It will be apphed m Greenleaf Park, at Folsom and Pearl streets Educational s~gns will be placed in the pazk Staff will be orgamzmg several weed pulls over the summer, mcludmg one for diffuse knapweed along the Boulder Creek Path from Eban G Fme Park mto lower Boulder Canyon in late May Volunteers aze always welcome It should also be noted that Pazks staff provides norificatron to park users when applymg fertil~zer at vanous park sites These fertil~zers do not contam herbic~des or pest~c~des but aze part of healthy plant management and are nohced to provide clanficahon to the pubhc If Counc~l has additional questions or comments about these planned appl~cations for pest control, please contact Alice Guthne, Integrated Pest Management Coordmator, 441-1915, at the Office of Environmental Affairs ~ r ATTACHNIENT I- Description of Pest~c~des Herbic~des Escort- EPA Tosicrty Category III - Caution Chemical name Metsulfuron methyl Herb~cide family - Sulfonylurea Selecrive for sunflower and mustard family Non-persistent Round-ukr- EPA Toxicity Category III - Caution Chemical name glyphosate Broad spectrum. nonselective, systemic Target weeds many grasses, forbs, vmes, shrubs, and trees Glyphosate bmds readily with soil particles, which l~mrts rts movement m the environment It is degraded through microbial metabol~sm w~th an average half-l~fe of two months ~n soils and two to ten weeks m water In plants, glyphosate ~s slowly metabolized Telar- EPA Tox~crty Category III - Caution Chemical name Chlorsulfuron Herbicide fam~ly Sulfonylurea Selechve on annual, bienmal and perenmal broadleaf weeds, mcludmg Canada thistle, teasel, Scotch thistle, perenmal pepperweed Non-perststent Tordon- EPA Toxicity Category III - Caution Chem~ca] name Picloram Herbicide family pyndme Select~ve Restncted Use Herbicide (must be apphed by a licensed commercial applicator) Target Species annual and perenmal broadleaf herbs and woody piants, esp leafy spurge Picloram is water-soluble, does not bmd strongly to soil panc~les, and can be persistent and mohile m the environment ~ Translme- EPA Toxicity Category III - Caurion Chemical name Clopyrahd Herbicide ~wn family pyndme Selective Tazget weeds annual and perenrual broadleaf weeds, esp . knapweeds, thistles, and other members of the sunflower family, legumes, and knotweeds families In so~l and water, clopyralid is degraded pnmanly by microbial metabolism It is resistant to degradat~on by sunhght, hydrolysis, or other chemical degradat~on It is water- soluble. does not bind strongly with soils, and has the potential to be h~ghiy mobile m soils, especially sandy soils Clopyra-id is not highly volatile Insect~cides Permethnn- EPA Tosicity Category III - Caution Chemical name permethrm Insecricide category pyrethroid Neem- EPA Toxicity Category II - Warning Chemical name Neem Neem ~s approved for use on orgamc crops because it is a natural demarive from the seeds of the Neem tree Its EPA Toxicity Category is based on the eye sens~tivity that appLcators can have if they do not wear proper eye safety equipment The oral LD50 for Neem is a Tox~city Level IV, the same as soap M-Pede ISS- EPA Toxicity Category N- Caut~on Chemical name Insect~cidal soap, Potassium salts of fatty acids Greyhound- EPA Toxicity Category II - Warnmg Chemical name Abamectin Insecticide category mit~cide Applicahon method trunk m~ection ~