Q.  What does Integrated Pest Management really mean?
A. IPM is an effective and structured approach to pest management that is also environmentally-sensitive. It blends commonsense and traditional farming practices with the benefits of technology and scientific understanding of pests and how to deal with them. In this way it is possible to manage pest damage economically with the least possible hazard to people, property and the environment.

Q.  How do IPM strategies work?
A.  Very often, growers start with a four-step approach. First, they set an action threshold for a pest, disease or environmental condition. Secondly, they monitor and identify the pests to decide upon the appropriate response. Next, they consider preventive methods for controlling the pest or problem before it develops. This might mean earlier or later planting to avoid danger periods for pests; rotating crops to reduce pest numbers; or selecting pest-resistant varieties. Such preventive measures usually have little or no impact on the environment.
        Finally, control is required if monitoring indicates that the action thresholds are exceeded. It might be enough to pull out affected plants by hand or machine, or the assessment may show that a highly-targeted chemical is the best response.

Q.  Is IPM going to be expensive for growers?
A. Since much of what we are asking growers to do is based on a commonsense approach and often already part of normal practices, those aspects of IPM are no more costly than usual. Options that do not offer a clear return to the grower make no sense and are unlikely to be followed by growers. While sometimes it may be slightly more expensive in terms of inputs for a grower to follow an IPM strategy, the pay-off is in increased yield and extra cash income which more than offsets the initial extra costs.

Q.  Does this mean that farmers in CWANA should turn away from expensive pesticides?
A. Appropriate use of pesticides is very much a part of an

IPM strategy for some crops. IPM involves taking advantage of all appropriate pest management options, but each option is followed only after careful assessment of the problem, crop, and local situation. The aim is a targeted use of the most suitable pesticides for the required task rather than simply spraying a non-specific product that kills both harmful and beneficial insects or organisms.

Q.  Are there other benefits for growers from taking the IPM route?
A. The principles of integrated pest management can be applied to many different agricultural pests whether vertebrate or invertebrate, plant, fungi, bacteria or virus. By attacking the pest in several different ways, the chances of the pest developing a resistance to, say, a particular pesticide are much reduced. The targeted use of pesticides also makes it likely that natural predators--bacteria, fungi or other organisms--survive to have an impact on pest numbers. This synergy is the hallmark of IPM.

Q.  How do you see IPM developing in CWANA?
A. By virtue of adaptability, the principles of IPM are applicable to every crop and to many pests and stresses. Science is adding to the range of options at the disposal of farmers so they are able to bring ever more sophisticated methods to bear on their crops. For example, biotechnology is instrumental in allowing the speedy introduction of new crop varieties with built-in levels of pest resistance undreamed of in the pest.
        There is also an increasing awareness among the farmers and agriculturalists of CWANA that mistakes have been made in the past that have adversely affected the environment and the conditions under which their next set of crops are grown. Careful choice of control options also takes into account the undesirability of pesticides that can affect humans, especially those handling the materials, as well as the environment. In other words, pesticides should only be used when other control options available cannot provide the desired protection level.