The New York state senate approved a measure to ban pesticides on school and day care playing fields. Grounds superintendents will have to use more organic strategies for taking care of the grass. A lot of schools utilize pesticides to destroy pests, bugs and weeds. However, a number of studies have indicated that exposure to pesticides can increase children’s’ risk for cancer. Pesticides can also exacerbate asthma and trigger seizures.

The bill still needs to get the approval of the assembly and the governor to become law. The Department of Environmental Conservation commissioner Pete Grannis stated “pesticides should be kept away from kids.” He went on to say “if something is designed to kill, you have to wonder about its effects.”

The state of Connecticut passed a pesticide ban on school athletic fields that takes effect in July. Perhaps other states will consider passing a similar bill. By the way, school officials in New Jersey and New York City should also consider using bed bug detection dogs to search for bed bugs in the classrooms.

A Mom and her son in North Carolina had been sleeping with the lights on hoping that whatever was biting them in the dark would stop.  A recent trip to the pediatrician’s office unearthed the problem…bed bugs!  The doctor informed the Mom that the nighttime bloodsuckers had to be lurking in the dark corners of her apartment waiting for the perfect time to feed on their unsuspecting hosts.

Just like in New Jersey and New York, North Carolina has experienced a significant increase in bed bug problems.  In hopes of trying to get a handle on the problem, the Mom decided to throw away her couch and beds.  Many people don’t know that you don’t need to throw away expensive furniture if you have a bed bug infestation problem.

At Stern Environmental Group we offer products and services that will help you get rid of bed bugs and save your furniture as well.  Stop by our website to see our bed bug services, monitors, heat chamber, Cryonite system, bed bug sniffing dogs, mattress encasements, and travel accessories.  Stern Environmental Group provides fast expert bed bug services to Secaucus, New Jersey, the Greater New York City Metro and Connecticut Regions.

Continuing from Tuesday…

The LSG SkyChefs facility in Denver reportedly prepares about 35,000 airline passenger meals per day for many different airlines.  The Denver kitchen facility has now been downgraded from “approved” to “provisional”.  This means that they are still open for business, but they only have one chance to clean up their act upon re-inspection.  If they don’t, the Denver facility will be shut down. Re-inspection is scheduled for the beginning of January so holiday travelers are not quite out of the woods yet.  For everyone’s sake, hopefully the disgusting bugs and germs will be gone soon.

Too bad the workers couldn’t see the cockroaches and take care of them BEFORE the Food and Drug Administration’s visit. Nobody wants roaches in their food people!  Just hire a pest control specialist to get the job done!  It should also be noted that airlines are now making passengers pay for their food instead of receiving it for free.  You would think with the extra dough they are collecting, a pest control specialist would be standard procedure…I’m just saying!  The FDA allows the public to view the LSG SkyChefs report, or any other report online, at any time.

With many schools still out of session and all of the hustle and bustle of the holiday season still in full swing; thinking about what you might be eating on an airplane is not likely a high priority during this time of year.  Holiday travelers will not be happy to hear that the food they might encounter could have come in contact with something more than plastic covered hands.

The Food and Drug Administration’s findings at the Denver kitchen of the LSG SkyChefs facility are deplorable to say the least.  Live and dead cockroaches, ants and flies have been found in the kitchen cart wash area, repack area, silverware station, hot kitchen, pots and pans ware washing room, dish machine wash area, and inside the machine loading area.  Some of these areas notated had the exact amount of cockroaches that were found listed on the report.  Some had the lovely abbreviation of “TNTC” instead.  This stands for Too Numerous to Count!  Those wonderful FDA inspectors also found evidence of contamination in the hot kitchen area of Listeria Monocytogenes; which can really make you sick with fever, muscle aches, nausea or diarrhea.  Yeah!

Please check back on Thursday for the conclusion.

In continuation from Thursday…

I read a story a few days ago about some residents who are renting mobile homes at an RV park in Bakersfield, California.  Residents have complained to management about bed bugs biting them for months, yet nothing has been done to eradicate them.  Instead they have been told to buy a can of Raid to get rid of the bed bugs.  Sorry Charlie, bad advice there!  The pest control officials mentioned in the article (it is unknown if they are providing services to the RV park) say that you have to throw out any infested belongings, re-carpet, and fumigate to get rid of the bed bugs.  Again, not the best bit of information given out to the public.

There are many different treatment options available for people who are suffering with a bed bug infestation.  The most important things to do are educate yourself so you are well informed, and hire an experienced bed bug expert who can eradicate the bed bugs for you correctly!  New Jersey and New York residents, give Stern Environmental Group a call.  We are the bed bug experts!

Stern Environmental Group would like to take this opportunity to apologize to our faithful customers and readers.  We were recently notified by some of our customers that they had received some very strange email messages which initially looked like they were coming from our company.  Once investigated, we realized that our Stern Twitter account had been hacked by some unscrupulous people on November 4th and November 9th!  Hacking into someone’s online business sources is completely shameful and unethical!

We would like all of our customers and readers to know that Stern never participates in spaming or phishing schemes.  We will never contact you to ask you for any password or credit card information either. Stern strives to provide our readers with the most updated information about bed bugs, bed bug products, bed bug services, and other important pest and urban wildlife information.  Through our extensive research and experience, we are able to bring you interesting and sometimes even funny stories that are directly linked to the industry that we are so passionate about.

If you ever receive any communication from Stern Environmental Group that seems to be out of the ordinary or meets any of the above criteria; we ask that you please contact us immediately so that we can take measures to stop this deceitful practice of others.

We do encourage you all to stop by our Twitter page and view some of our interesting topics and links.

Natural pest killing products are becoming more popular with residents in NJ, NYC and all over the nation. Yes they are lethal, for example a soil-dwelling bacterium can fry the nervous systems of fire-ants. Popular insecticide manufactures are producing these products and they can be found at popular retail stores.

The products are made from materials such as plants, bacteria, animals and minerals. The popularity of these products has been powered by the governments scrutiny of pesticides for households use and the desire of consumers to use safer pesticides.

Yes, residents of NJ, NYC, the Bronx, Queens, Manhattan and perhaps Brooklyn can now kill carpenter ants, mosquitoes, slugs and other unwanted critters with natural products. The EPA has stated that biopesticides are typically “inherently less toxic” when compared to standard pesticides. They also decompose faster and thus less harmful to the environment.

Unfortunately, I have not seen a natural product that is highly effective at killing bedbugs. Sure, you could smash them with a zucchini but it get tiresome and it might look silly.

If you have NJ, NYC, Bronx, Queens, Manhattan or Brooklyn bed bugs ask a NJ, NYC bed bugs pest control professional to destroy them.

Because our area is such a breeding ground for West Nile virus, we wanted to provide you with additional information on how to prevent this disease. Here is the best advice from the Centers of Disease Control:

• The best way to avoid mosquito bites is to put insect repellents on exposed skin. The CDC  recommends four ingredients: DEET, picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus (or PMD), and IR3535 (its latest addition to the list). In addition, permethrin—which can be used on clothing, shoes, camping gear, and bed nets, but not skin—is an option.

• Stay indoors at or near dawn and dusk, when West Nile infections tend to occur. “Try and avoid mosquito bites at these times,” says Lyle Petersen, director of the CDC’s Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases.

• Eliminate mosquito breeding sites around your home. These include small pools of water such as a birdbath that’s not cleaned out, water at the bottom of a flowerpot, and old buckets or tires with standing water. “Any kind of container can breed mosquitoes,” Petersen says. Emptying such containers once or twice a week should do the trick.

• Put screens on your windows and doors—and repair the screens if they have holes in them. Also, use air conditioning so you can keep the windows closed.

• Use mosquito netting on infant carriers when taking a baby outdoors.

West Nile virus is a serious health threat. Call an experienced NJ, NYC pest control expert to ensure your family’s health and safety.

April brings many new things around the United States.  The snow is a distant memory, the birds are chirping, flowers are blooming, it’s getting warmer each day, and many seasonal pests are rearing their ugly heads.  It is so appropriate that the National Pest Management Association (NPMA) has designated April as “National Pest Management Month.”  This observance has been recognized for the past thirty years by each sitting United States President.

This recognition is greatly warranted because the pest control industry plays a key role in protecting people’s health and homes from significant pest borne threats around America.  According to Missy Henriksen, Vice President of Public Affairs for NPMA, “National Pest Management Month continues to be an important way to highlight and publicly acknowledge the hard work that pest professionals do day in and day out.  Protecting our valued customers’ homes and families is not something this industry takes lightly and NPMA is pleased to honor this important work with a month-long celebration.” 

Additionally, consumers are encouraged to visit a newly developed online website that will serve as a great resource for pest information.  On the site you will find a podcast series where visitors can hear expert information on selecting a pest professional.  It is easy to download the information for free by visiting Pestworld.org and iTunes.  Consumers will also find specific information on how to dispose of Household Hazardous Waste on the site.

If you are plagued with any pest problem that needs attention, check out what Stern can do for you.

Room turn-around is key in the hospitality industry. Every day a bed bug-infested room is out of commission for pesticide treatment, you’re losing money. Typical chemical pesticides can leave wet poisonous residues and unpleasant chemical odors that can keep rooms out of commission for days. Even worse, there are growing reports of pesticide-resistant bed bugs that don’t respond to traditional treatments. House a guest in an inadequately treated room and you could have a major lawsuit on your hands.

Savvy hotel, motel and resort managers are using Cryonite to kill bed bugs. A completely non-toxic “green” treatment, Cryonite kills bed bugs (and roaches and other insects) with a non-poisonous carbon dioxide “snow.” The vapor easily penetrates into cracks and crevices and under furniture and bedding where bed bugs hide. Unlike traditional pesticides, Cryonite quick-freezes bed bugs in all stages of development from adult to egg and kills them before they can scurry away.

Cryonite allows hotel rooms to be returned to service immediately after treatment. It leaves no liquid residue or unpleasant odor. No toxic chemicals are used that might harm guests. In 7-day follow-up tests, Cryonite showed a 100% kill rate. It’s no wonder Stern Environmental commercial customers are raving about the benefits of Cryonite. To find out more about using Cryonite to protect your hotel from bed bugs, visit the Stern Environmental website.