BED BUGS ... ALL OVER!

I don't know about you, but I have been following the proliferation in the media of articles on bed bugs. Suddenly, it seems – well, we in the industry all know that it really isn't all that sudden – these little critters have popped up on everyone's radar. Newspapers from coast to coast have been reporting on what you need to do when you arrive at a hotel to check for bed bugs. (Most of us have been doing this for six months or more, thanks to the example provided by Gail Getty who has been touting this procedure for a long time!) The national media, TV and radio are all in on the act: NPMA staff have been featured on "Good Morning America" and on NPR.

One particular article caught my attention in Bloomberg Businessweek: "From sunny California to New York City, in flophouses, theaters and high-end offices, bed bugs are popping up in droves; although, these days, they're found in a lot more places than just your bed. According to a NPMA/University of Kentucky report, 95 percent of U.S. pest management companies surveyed said they had ‘encountered a bed bug infestation in the past year.' In Ohio, dubbed the new ‘Bed Bug Capital of the United States,' some residents have taken to sleeping in the streets just to get away from their co-habitants."

A surge in international travel is being blamed for the "comeback" of bed bugs. As we know, although they don't transmit disease, they are certainly causing a great deal of stress and anxiety. That is why, this month, PCOC and NPMA teamed up with California associations representing hotels and apartment owners, to put on two bed bug seminars. In quite a reversal of our usual events, the attendees were actually from the hotel and apartment industries, whilst the exhibitors were PCOs who exhibit solutions in the marketplace exhibit hall at each conference.

The Structural Pest Control Board has put out a request for proposal for a research project to study bed bugs. I think this highlights the importance of this issue. It also draws out attention to the fact that California-based pest control research resources are shrinking dramatically. For example, the UC Berkeley school, headed by Dr. Vernard Lewis, desperately needs funding. It is critically important that we preserve research facilities based in California. At our June board of directors' meeting in Monterey, over $50,000 was pledged by industry to help sustain this important work.

It is good to see the pest control industry concerned about its long-term health and involved in projects that help society as a whole.

Pest Control Operators of California
www.pcoc.org

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