• Pest Management

    On September 27, 2000, Governor Gray Davis signed into law the Healthy Schools Act of 2000.  This law requires school districts to notify employees and parents/guardians about pesticides used in district schools, and requires the Department of Pesticide Regulation to promote the voluntary adoption of integrated pest management practices in schools.  Each school district is to implement the following requirements: 

    • Provide school staff and parents/guardians with annual written notification of all non-exempt pesticide products the district expects to use on school grounds.
    • Each school shall provide the opportunity for interested staff and parents/guardians to register with the district if they want to be notified of individual pesticide applications at the school before they occur. 
    • Post warning signs in areas where pesticides will be applied.  These signs will be posted 24 hours before and 72 hours after the pesticide application. 
    • Each school will maintain records of all pesticide use at the school for four years and make the records available to the public upon request.

    It is the policy of the state that effective least-toxic pest management practices should be the preferred method of managing pests at schools.  To that end, St. Helena Unified School District adheres to the philosophy and definition of integrated pest management (IPM) as defined by the Healthy Schools Act of 2000.  The Act defines IPM as a pest management strategy that focuses on long-term prevention or suppression of pest problems through a combination of techniques such as monitoring for pest presence and establishing treatment threshold levels, using non-chemical practices to make habitats less conducive to pest development, improving sanitation, and using mechanical/physical controls.  Pesticides that pose the least possible hazard and are effective in a manner that minimizes risks to people, property, and the environment are used only after careful monitoring indicates they are needed according to pre-established guidelines and treatment thresholds.

    Pesticide Application

    The St. Helena Unified School District will not use any pesticides known to have cancer-causing agents, or that could cause damage to the reproductive or nervous systems.  Only those pesticides listed on the SHUSD authorized list will be utilized to control pests, applied only when all other less toxic control measures have failed.  There will be no pesticide applications during regular school hours, unless the presence of that pest is deemed more dangerous than the treatment.  

    Parents or guardians may request prior notification of individual pesticide applications at the school site.  People listed on this registry will be notified at least 72 hours before pesticides are applied.  The notification will include the product's name, active ingredient, and the intended application date.  If you would like to be notified every time we apply a pesticide, please complete the online registration survey at the bottom of this webpage.  

    Warning signs will be posted 24 hours prior to the application and will remain posted for 72 hours after the application.  The sign will display the term "Warning/Pesticide Treated Area" and will include the name of the pesticide, the manufacturer's name, the United States Environmental Protection Agency's product registration number, the intended application date, the areas to be treated, and the reason for the pesticide treatment. 

    Pesticide Exemptions

    Pesticide products deployed in the form of a self-contained bait or trap, gel or paste that is deployed as a crack and crevice treatment, and any pesticide exempted from regulation by the United States Environmental Protection agency pursuant to the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (7 U.S.C. Sec 25 {b} ) antimicrobial pesticides, including sanitizers and disinfectants, are exempt from the recordkeeping, written notification, and posting requirements of the Healthy Schools Act of 2000.

    If you have any questions about the district's pest management program, please contact Kay Vang at kvang@sthelenaunified.org 

    For more information regarding pesticides and pesticide use reduction, visit the Department of Pesticide Regulation's website http://ww.cdpr.ca.gov.

    Documents

    2024-2025 Annual Pesticide Notification 

    2023-2024 Annual Pesticide Notification

    2023-2024 Annual Pesticide Notification (Spanish)