1) Natural Resources Defense Council report: "More IPM Please: How USDA could deliver greater environmental benefits from Farm Bill conservation programs." (Feb. 2007).

… Integrated pest management, or IPM, can provide effective crop protection while minimizing risks to health and the environment. These smarter, prevention-based pest control practices can avoid resistance problems that occur with traditional pesticides and may reduce overall costs by lowering chemical inputs, reducing liability and worker injuries, and improving public relations.

Unfortunately, the largest Farm Bill conservation program – the Environmental Quality Incentives Program, or EQIP – is failing to adequately help farmers adopt integrated pest management practices. EQIP is a nearly $800 million federal program intended to help farmers protect soil, water, air, plants and animals. The program could more effectively achieve its conservation goals and meet the needs of farmers by increasing the quantity and quality of assistance to growers seeking to adopt environmentally sound pest management practices…Read the full report in a pdf file.

Articles

• Opportunities, Experiences, and Strategies to Connect Integrated Pest Management to U.S. Department of Agriculture Conservation Programs
• The Case and Opportunity for Public-Supported Financial Incentives to Implement Integrated Pest Management
• Adoption of Pest, Nutrient, and Conservation Vegetation Management Using Financial Incentives Provided by a USDA Conservation Program