ABSTRACT
Citizen concern about the use of pesticide by public agencies has increasingly led to calls for the use of alternative maintenance practices. Frequently, communities that have examined the options have accurately concluded that integrated pest management (IPM) provides the best means of developing viable vegetation and pest control strategies that are both environmentally sound and cost-effective. The substantial environmental advantages of IPM were recognized after its economic value, but they are just as real. Indeed, this is why the methodology is so well suited for the 1990s, when widespread environmental concern will apparently be accompanied by tight financial times. Time and time again, the pitfalls discussed in this article have cost what could have been an effective program the results it should have achieved. Inevitably, this has come about because of the provs. antipesticide controversy, with its hostility and suspicion, and the desire of one or both factions to bend reality to fit their preconceived philosophical position and/or exercise control.
