Experiences with implementation and adoption of integrated pest management in northeastern USA

Abstract

Integrated Pest Management (IPM) has been adopted to varying extents in the northeastern United States. In this region, IPM encompasses a wide range of activities ranging from IPM in agriculture to school and urban IPM. With global and regional trends in population growth and demands to keep food production sustainable, safe, economic, and socially acceptable, IPM continues to gain momentum in all agricultural operations. There is a growing awareness among consumers about IPM as they begin to recognize products that feature IPM as part of their production. Consumer awareness stimulates growers to practice even more IPM. Each state in the northeast region has an IPM coordinator housed in the state's leading land grant university, who is charged with supporting and promoting IPM in that state and serving as a liaison to the federal government. IPM programs are often carried out on a collaborative basis between states within the region, and the IPM coordinators meet annually to discuss topics of common interest and also to discuss how successful programs have been implemented. The 12 states in the northeast region have research and extension programs that address IPM. There is also an IPM Center intended to reach out to a broader stakeholder base to facilitate IPM efforts by various role players in the discipline. Often times, IPM involves multiple disciplines, and to carry out successful multidisciplinary programming efforts in research and outreach certain obstacles may be faced. This chapter provides a broad overview related to implementation of successful IPM programs in the northeast region of the United States, and discusses several specific success stories in individual states as well as some of the challenges faced today.