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Action Plans - Other Cities

Central Ohio Bed Bug Summit on November 10

by Renee Corea on October 8, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities, Events

Update: Ohio’s Section 18 exemption filing was announced at the summit.

The Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force, the volunteer bed bug task force that is fighting bed bugs in the Greater Columbus area, is holding its second annual bed bug summit on November 10. Second annual! What extraordinary work they are doing.

The agenda includes a refresher course by Dr. Susan Jones; multiple presentations on the specific challenges of bed bug infestations in rental housing, health and social services, schools, the hospitality industry, pest management, regulation, and enforcement; a legislative update; and a moderated panel discussion.

We’re all stakeholders in the great bed bug challenge of our time but if you have an interest in bed bug public policy or work in property management or any of the seriously affected industries and services, I think this is the only place to be on November 10:

Since its inception in November 2008, the Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force has done a great deal to educate everyone in Central Ohio about the growing problem that bed bugs pose for our community. Bed bugs have caused significant financial and psychological distress for hundreds of Franklin County residents, and the number of infested buildings grows every day.

Bed bug infestations occur in the City of Columbus, in the suburbs, and in the rural parts of our area. No one is immune from an infestation. Bed bugs have infested hospitals, schools, hotels, apartment buildings, private homes, movie theaters, nursing homes and numerous other places.

We would like to share what we’ve learned, what we’ve accomplished so far, and what challenges remain as we try to reduce the impact of this pest in our community.

The meeting will be held on November 10 from 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM at the Ohio Department of Agriculture, Bromfield Administration Building Auditorium, 8995 East Main Street, Reynoldsburg, Ohio. Seating is limited. If you plan to attend or have questions about the program, please contact Paul Wenning, Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force Chair, as soon as possible at (614) 462-3928, or by e-mail: pfwennin@franklincountyohio.gov.

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The Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force, doing great work

by Renee Corea on August 26, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities, Public Health

I hope you are checking the website of the Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force every now and then. If you live in a place, like we do, where there’s nothing like it, you can borrow and learn from them.

I just mentioned this document in a comment to someone, a NYC health services worker looking for guidance, and I want to share with the rest of you out there in similar circumstances, the Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force’s Guidelines for Reducing the Risk of Transporting Bed Bugs (PDF), a guide for health care and social service workers making home visits.

People travel around in cars in Ohio. No matter, big city social and health care workers can adapt these recommendations.

You can find additional best practice resources on our resources page.

You may want to also check out our May interview with COBBTF Chair Paul Wenning.

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Michigan’s bed bug management decision flow chart

by Renee Corea on July 23, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities, Issues and Challenges

The Michigan Bed Bug Working Group has published a bed bug management flow chart (PDF)—additional working group materials are available at Michigan’s Emerging Diseases Issues website; see also our previous discussion of some documents that describe the goals and genesis of the working group.

The Michigan flow chart is adapted from the Harvard School of Public Health flow chart.

You will notice upon comparison an important change, as the Michigan document specifically tells landlords to:

  • Work with resident to form a workable pest management plan that involves prep by resident, treatment by PMP, education and response from landlord
  • Inspect, caulk crevices around room, inspect neighboring units to identify and contain further infestations

This is great. Multiple unit housing can absolutely be made free of bed bugs, I firmly believe, and need not be declared a lost cause.

However, I propose that we should identify just what is to be done to “contain further infestations.” I am not a pest management professional, but I can play one on TV, and I say that inspecting is not enough. I think you can still be conservative about treating areas that are not currently infested (but we all know might become infested after the first round of treatment in those areas that are infested is completed) by treating structural voids.

In a recent PMP article (link is to the digital magazine edition), Richard Diggs of Alexandria Pest Services, describes their bed bug treatment protocol in some detail; it includes, aside from a battery of other tools and strategies, dusting of wall cavities above baseboards. It’s worth a read. Whenever pest management professionals describe their bed bug work and success rate, I am intrigued by their tone and the implied assessments of what everyone else is doing, and I wonder why we are in the situation we are in, after all. I also always want to ask, yeah, but does this scale? But you can read for yourself.

You can also read about “built-in pest control” in this article, Managing Insecticide Resistance in Urban Insects (PDF, 1996 ICUP) by Michael Rust. I only know about it from reading Boase. Actually, we’ll revisit the Boase article, given recent developments.

So, in my considered TV PMP view, because there is no reported resistance to dusts, and because we are in a very deep hole, I submit that inspecting is not enough and you have to treat potential harborage sites and dispersion routes as well. The most conservative thing you can do is dust.

We can’t avoid multi unit housing as some would have us do. I think the bed bugs can be dispatched even in multi unit housing.

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Beating Bedbugs guides from Greater London Pest Liaison Group

by Renee Corea on July 6, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities, Featured, Public Health

The Greater London Pest Liaison Group’s Beating Bedbugs best practice guides are finally out and you may download them on the group’s new website.

Not since the days of stalking the Cincinnati Board of Health meeting minutes for news of the Cincinnati/Hamilton County Strategic Plan have I waited for any bed bug documents with such impatience, continually checking various websites. And now I can’t devote proper time to discussing them! (Apologies, I hope we can return to this subject and review it in greater depth soon, or better yet, you tell us what you find interesting.) I entreat you, then, to read these documents; they reward the attention.

There are five guides, all PDFs: Information for Residents, Information for Landlords, Information for Healthcare Professionals, Preparing your home for bedbug treatment, and Inspection and treatment guide.

We first noted them here and learned that they were presented at Pestex this year, where the adoption rationale as well as the use of relevant laws for treatment access were explained. Once again, the ever useful Pest showed us where to find what we were looking for.

If you are interested in this subject, the difficult subject of bed bug policy development, you might see in these guides one clear path. There are many different ways of achieving our hoped-for result. One way, the city government way, seems closed to us for now, but why can’t we do this here, exactly? Our system is different, no local authorities here providing pest control services, but the elucidation of what needs to be done, what existing laws can be used to advantage, and, more important, an obvious consensus from within the practicing professionals, an agreement on direction and purpose if not methods. Why can’t we have this here?

If you care to look at our interview with Clive Boase, you will see his discussion of the 1936 Public Health Act and the principles of bed bug treatment and eradication borne out in these documents.

Notice for example, in the Guidance on Inspection and Treatment (PDF):

Confirmation that bedbugs have actually been eradicated from the treated premises, is critical. A surviving and redeveloping infestation will disperse and infest other properties, undoing the work already carried out.

Ha, indeed.

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The NH Bedbugs project

by Renee Corea on June 24, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities

Nobugs has a nice post taking note of the remarkable news from New Hampshire of a new organization that will begin its work by taking on the eradication of bed bugs from a Manchester building as a community project.

My comment got lost in the spam filter but it was about this New Hampshire Public Radio story a year ago about bed bugs in a Manchester building, not identified in the story but managed by the same management company as the Langdon Mill Apartments, the building in the present community eradication effort. They spent $15,000 then on a protocol of emptying the contents of the apartments and fumigating them (perhaps it was not true fumigation but conventional treatment). The infestations persisted.

I hope the cycle of loss and bed bugs for these families, and for this building, will now end.

Congratulations to the organizations and volunteers of NH Bedbugs for an awesome undertaking.

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Michigan’s Bed Bug Workgroup

by Renee Corea on May 27, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities

I found these background notes (PDF) on the website of the Property Management Association of West Michigan (PMAM); they describe the efforts of a workgroup on bed bugs brought together by the Michigan Department of Community Health. The first meeting was in January:

The work group consisted of members from the Michigan Department of Health, Michigan Department of Agriculture, Michigan State University, Michigan Environmental Health Association, Michigan Pest Control Association, Wayne County Health Department, and the PMAM, representing the property management industry. Everyone felt that there is little information out there from within Michigan and that this work group could possibly take the lead in providing information to Michigan residents concerning this growing problem. Eric Foster, with MDCH, let the initial workgroup meeting and hosted the meeting also. The meeting lasted four hours and resulted in four subcommittees being formed. Gary Offenbacher represented PMAM and the housing industry for the initial meeting.

Four subcommittees were formed to work on issues surrounding the bed bug itself, treatment guidelines, laws and regulations and education/training and communication. The identified issues included quality of life, anxiety, difficulty in controlling infestations, public education, enforcement, tracking complaints, etc. This list of areas of focus and tasks should be familiar to all of us by now.

The second meeting’s update from March 23 (PDF) evinces what to me looks like substantial progress, notably a website (and it’s great to see the NYS IPM Program/Cornell guidelines being so useful).

The workgroup is apparently developing a Bed Bug Manual that would be a

comprehensive manual to cover all aspects of prevention and control of bed bugs. The assumption is that the “Bed Bug Manual” would be in a binder form and also available in CD format and be published on the Web. There is no exact timeframe for having this project completed, but a start was to get existing information on the web, which has been accomplished.

This is what is puzzling about our bed bug “epidemic.” There are so few resources and yet everyone is forced to develop guidance entirely from the ground up? This is where federal agencies can lend a hand.

Will our city be able to muster this kind of cooperation? Here. What will our efforts look like… when and if they get off the ground.

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The Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force: an interview with Paul Wenning

by Renee Corea on May 5, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities, Featured, Interviews

Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force (COBBTF) Chair Paul Wenning of the Franklin County Board of Health very graciously answered our questions via email.

New York vs Bed Bugs: We are very impressed with the task force and understand it’s a volunteer organization?

Paul Wenning: We’ve known it was just a matter of time before bed bugs became a large problem in Greater Columbus. I had a series of conversations with officials from Cincinnati and Hamilton County (Greater Cincinnati) in the early autumn of 2008, and the astronomical rise in the number of cases there over a five year period convinced me that we had to take action and quickly. I began conversations with Dr. Susan Jones, from the Ohio State University Extension Office, who is also a leading expert on bed bugs. We quickly created a Bed Bug Summit, to which representatives of the City of Columbus, the suburbs, and County agencies were invited. It was well attended, and at the end of the program, I asked for volunteers to help establish a Bed Bug Task Force for Columbus and Franklin County. We held our first meeting in November, and I set forth a series of goals and objectives for the group to discuss. They were:

  • Develop consistent messages for the residents of the area concerning bed bugs;
  • Develop methods to educate our communities about bed bugs;
  • Dispel the myths surrounding bed bugs;
  • Target groups and populations who were at the greatest risk of getting or spreading bed bugs.

The group members agreed with those goals with some modifications. We immediately established subcommittees composed of people with real experience for each of our target communities, including rental housing, and code enforcement; schools, hotels and transient housing, public safety, health care, and social service agencies, and media outreach / public education.

We also committed to the development of a website. Our agency agreed to fund the development and maintenance of the site, but we made it clear that we would rely on the other members for content. I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the enthusiasm and hard work that our members have shown.

New York vs Bed Bugs: How many agencies and stakeholders are actively involved in the task force? What are the jurisdictional areas? Columbus and surrounding counties?

Paul Wenning: Right now, we are restricting our focus to Columbus and Franklin County. We’ve had requests from the City of Dayton, and from smaller communities in the outlying counties to join the COBBTF, but frankly, since this is a voluntary effort, we just cannot coordinate anything larger than we have at present. That may change in the distant future, but it would require significant funding first.

Our area is a hodge-podge of local jurisdictions. We have the remnants of 17 townships left in the county, 12 or more communities that are cities (populations > 5,000 – though most of them far exceed that figure) under the Ohio Revised Code, the City of Columbus, and a few small villages. Each community has its own school system, fire and police departments and code enforcement officials. Our health department serves all of the communities with the exception of Columbus. It has its own health department.

Our total population is about 1.2 million and growing. Our population is very diverse. We have a large Somali population, a very large Hispanic population, a sizeable Asian population, and growing Pakistani and Indian populations.

At present, members of the COBBTF represent:

  • 4 local fire departments;
  • Code Officials from the City of Columbus and 5 suburbs;
  • School nurses from Columbus and the Cities of Westerville and Upper Arlington;
  • Representatives of the pest control industry (5);
  • Representatives from the rental housing industry (mainly property managers and maintenance staff);
  • The Central Ohio Agency on Aging;
  • Ohio State University Student Housing;
  • The Urban League;
  • Franklin County Job and Family Services;
  • OSU Extension;
  • The State Departments of Health (schools, nursing homes), Agriculture (pesticides), Commerce (used furniture and hotel licensing);
  • The City of Grove City Travel and Tourism Board;
  • Franklin County Office on Aging;
  • Franklin County Legal Aid;
  • Franklin County and Columbus Health Departments;
  • Local hospitals.

I’m sure that I’ve forgotten several people. They are listed on the web site under the partners tab.

New York vs Bed Bugs: At the EPA bed bug summit we heard there was disagreement about what to do. How have you coped with the potential for similar disagreement within the task force, particularly with such a large number of volunteers?

Paul Wenning: We haven’t had too much disagreement within the group. By keeping our general goals and objectives broad enough, and by vesting the responsibility for each subcommittee to decide how they will address the issues in ways that are productive to their constituencies, I think that we’ve avoided all of that. When the COBBTF first formed, I made it clear to the subcommittee chairs that we considered them to be the experts at reaching their populations. We (the Steering Committee) exist to help them achieve their objectives. And we’ve hewn to that philosophy. I think it has made a huge difference in the way that the Task Force has operated.

New York vs Bed Bugs: What is the legal framework for landlord/tenant bed bug issues in the task force’s areas of operation? Is there clarity on rights and responsibilities? I’ve been reading about the Columbus Apartment Association’s new rules and regs, and I’m troubled by the lack of clarity and potential to blame tenants, which should predictably result in decreased reporting of bed bug infestations. These situations usually spell disaster for control efforts.

Paul Wenning: As far as enforcement, bed bug complaints are handled by the Franklin County Board of Health (outside of Columbus) and Columbus Code Enforcement in the City. We’ve held several meeting with one another and we have adopted very similar enforcement strategies, in order to present a consistent message to our residents. Bed bugs are considered a nuisance under the Ohio Revised Code, and we must always name “the property owner of record” in any enforcement action that we take. However, we also name the tenants in the complaint if they are recalcitrant and refuse to assist the landlord in his or her efforts, by maintaining their unit in a clean and sanitary condition, encasing mattresses, etc.

The Columbus Apartment Association developed a document on its own that is now in circulation on the web and that is being disseminated by its representatives. The document has been submitted to the COBBTF Housing Subcommittee for review and amendment, but it is NOT a COBBTF document, and some of our members, especially from tenant’s right’s groups will not accept it without significant revision so that it is more balanced. The Housing Subcommittee members have told me that they think that the basic information is useful, but that they expect that it will be some time before a final draft is submitted to the Steering Committee.

New York vs Bed Bugs: What sort of challenges have you identified? There’s the gamut of bed bug problems, resources, legal issues, access to bed bug control services. In NYC one of the most challenging problems is access to pest control services. Another sort of intractable problem here is posed by refurbished mattresses. What are yours?

Paul Wenning: Our biggest challenges are: 1) Lack of funding; 2) Used mattress and furniture dealers; 3) Apathy; 4) Lack of personnel; 5) Availability of pest control for poor residents. In short, the same issues that you have!

New York vs Bed Bugs: Are you tracking infestations? What are the available statistics?

Paul Wenning: We haven’t developed a good tracking system yet. We’re working with Columbus Code Enforcement to develop a system, but it will take us awhile. We are informally tracking numbers now, but we do want to get a sysem together as soon as we can.

New York vs Bed Bugs: What are the critical needs? What can the people of Ohio and others, state legislators and federal agencies, do to help?

Paul Wenning: I’ll have to think more about what we need the most. Information is always helpful. A new USEPA policy allowing the use of restricted pesticides would help. Money for pesticide treatment for low income residents and senior citizens, and education and outreach would help, too. I’d also like to see the State Legislature place significantly stronger restrictions upon the sellers of used furniture and household goods that would require them to PROPERLY treat items before they are placed for sale, and would restrict ANYONE from selling discarded furniture that they collect from the alleys or dumpsters. Right now there are no restrictions upon that activity.

That’s the “short list.” I’m sure I’ll think of more.

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Baltimore’s Bed Bug Response Plan

by Renee Corea on April 26, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities

Baltimore has launched a comprehensive bed bug control strategy:

The plan was developed in consultation with EPA, the National Center for Healthy Housing and the NYC Department of Health. (This is interesting but, honestly, I’m not sure what it means.  You don’t need me to remind you again, and yet I’m doing it, that we have no bed bug strategy of our own.)

These are the actions Baltimore is taking:

  • performing bed bug inspections—and offering residents a “healthy homes assessment”
  • Baltimore City Health Department Healthy Homes Division staff received training on identification, safety, visual inspection and control
  • developing English- and Spanish-language educational materials, a mass media education campaign via EPA’s Hispanic Outreach Initiative, and a Spanish-language community outreach program where community health workers (“promotores”) are trained to educate Baltimore’s Latino community—this community education effort includes IPM, lead and asthma
  • training Baltimore City public housing maintenance and management staff and, apparently, impressing upon them “the need to immediately respond to bed bug complaints”

Congratulations, Baltimore.

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Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force

by Renee Corea on April 24, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities

The Central Ohio Bed Bug Task Force is entirely a volunteer organization according to this article about the task force in The Other Paper. They have a $5K grant. That’s it.

It’s humbling. They’re just simply doing this.

Jessica appreciated the scope of their new website.

I like their presentation for schools, Don’t Let the Bed Bugs Bite: What Every School Community Needs to Know (PPS download), see the last link on this page.

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For the “other cities” file: London to have best practices guidelines

by Renee Corea on April 6, 2009

in Action Plans - Other Cities

Via Pest, a London local authority pest control group has completed a series of best practice guides for residents, landlords and property owners, and healthcare professionals, plus an inspection and treatment guide for pest control professionals and a bed bug treatment preparation guide for residents. The guides will be released this month according to the Pest article, Beating bedbugs in London (PDF).  Notice on the left page a story about David’s passive monitor.

Every major city should develop clear bed bug control guidelines and policies!  This is certainly on our wish list.

So, your turn, New York City.

Further notes:

Also in this issue of Pest there is a list of industry bed bug resources (PDF). I thought I’d read one, the Killgerm Bed Bug Manual (PDF, 2008), and found it interesting for it contains a section on statistics, UK local authority bed bug treatments from 2002 to 2007 (excluding London authorities)—close to 900 treatments in 2006/2007—and requests for technical support (2005-2007) and identification services (2001-2007). We love our stats here, so thought I’d share.

The local authorities in the UK perform pest control services for public and private premises, residential and commercial, with charges, or the availability of free services, varying widely. In case you are interested, there’s a recent article that examines the organization of local authority pest management services in the UK (PDF) and this caught my eye:

While historically pest management has been viewed as a core function within environmental health departments, this view appears to be changing.

Murphy, G., Battersby, S., Oldbury, D. (2009) The organisation of local authority pest management services in the UK Journal of Environmental Health Research 9:1 25-32.

There is in fact a bed bug reference in this article, maybe, in that there’s a chart depicting the percentage of bed bug inquiries per month in several areas, characterized as frequency of liaison with another agency, but I think there must be some error because the text references to the chart are all about rodent baiting, so not sure what that is about.

Nobugs posted something today about a local authority in Hertfordshire that will no longer provide free bed bug treatments to those who cannot afford them.

I guess there will be bed bugs then.

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