The Healthy Schools Act is a California law that requires specific actions when pesticides are used at public K - 12 schools and public and private child care centers. The Department of Pesticide Regulation's School & Child Care IPM Programs support Healthy Schools Act compliance and facilitate the use of safer, more sustainable integrated pest management (IPM) practices.
What are pesticides?
A pesticide is any substance intended for preventing, destroying, repelling, or mitigating any pest. This includes products such as surface sanitizers and disinfectants, insecticides, and herbicides.
Select the thumbnail to visit DPR's YouTube Channel for videos on how to manage pests.
What is IPM?
Integrated pest management, or IPM, is a safer, more sustainable strategy you can use everyday. IPM focuses on a variety of pest prevention and non-toxic or least-toxic pest management techniques to effectively solve pest problems. IPM strategies use practices that exclude pests so they can’t cause problems and use pesticides only as a last resort. By using integrated pest management practices, it’s possible to effectively, safely, and more sustainably manage pests at your school or child care center while protecting staff, children, and the environment.
Follow DPR's social media outlets throughout the year to learn more!
Please contact the Department of Pesticide Regulation’s School & Child Care Integrated Pest Management Program by emailing school-ipm@cdpr.ca.gov. For additional information about the School & Child Care Integrated Pest Management Program please visit DPR’s website.
Who We Are
The California Department of Pesticide Regulation protects human health and the environment by fostering safer and sustainable pest management practices and operating a robust regulatory system to monitor and manage the sale and use of pesticides across the state. DPR’s work includes registering all pesticides sold or used in California, conducting scientific evaluation of pesticides to assess and mitigate potential harm to human health or the environment, investing in innovative research to encourage the development and adoption of integrated pest management tools and practices, monitoring for pesticides in the air and water, conducting outreach to ensure pesticide workers, farmworkers and local communities have access to safety information, and enforcing pesticide regulations in coordination with 55 County Agricultural Commissioners and their 400 field inspectors.
