Hopper’s ‘Green First’ is Alternative Approach for Pest Management

In our Green First programs, our company relies more on non-chemical steps in managing pests.

Like Hopper Environmental Services’ standard pest programs, our ‘Green First’ program is built around Preventive Pest Management – PPM for short. PPM relies upon non-chemical methods first to prevent and manage pests.

In our Green First programs, our company relies more on non-chemical steps in managing pests. Pests included in our “Green First” program include ants, crickets, mice, rats, roaches, silverfish, spiders & stored product pests.

Steps you can expect to find in PPM programs are:

• Inspection to find the true cause of a pest problem
• Low-risk, effective tactics to break the cycle of pest habitation, such as:
• Sanitation recommendations
• Exclusion (caulking, sealing)
• Mechanical control (barriers, traps)
• Cultural controls (move woodpiles, eliminate clutter)
• Biological controls (enzymes)
• Targeted, strategic use of products
• Customer education

Hopper’s service begins with a consultation with the prospective customer, followed by a thorough inspection of the home or property.

Hopper’s representative then develops a proposal based on information given by the customers and gathered during the inspection. These recommendations will include steps to be taken by the customer, such as moving a wood pile farther from the house, correcting a moisture problem resulting from poor drainage, or managing landscaping adjacent to the house in such a way that discourages pests.

Our proposal will then list the steps that Hopper Environmental Services will take in solving or preventing pest problems. Possibilities might include caulking or sealing pest entry points, the use or traps or glue boards, rescreening foundation vents to prevent rodent entry or the use of enzymes to clear drains of the material that breed fruit flies.

If and when products are needed, our first choice will be environmentally low impact products such as those containing boric acid, diatomaceous earth, and products that use plant and tree oils as their primary active ingredient.

The need for application of any product will be based on thorough inspections.

Our service professionals have extensive training in pest biology and behavior and the most current methods of control, both non-chemical and chemical.

If, for some reason, pest populations swell or reach a pre-indicated comfort threshold, more traditional products may need to be used in small, targeted applications to regain control. This is not unlike a good wellness plan developed by your physician, who uses prescription medicines only as a last resort.