<center>
<p> <!-- AddThis Button BEGIN --> Please pass on our newsletter to your friends!&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&amp;pub=prospectiv&amp;url=http://www.spcpweb.org/newsletter/SPCP_Fall_2009b.html&amp;title=Safer Pest Control Project - Fall 2009 Newsletter">   <img height="16" width="125" style="border: 0pt none ;" alt="Bookmark and Share" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/lg-share-en.gif" /> </a>  <!-- AddThis Button END --> </p>
<table cellspacing="1" cellpadding="0" bgcolor="#006857" width="720">
    <tbody>
        <tr>
            <td bgcolor="#ffffff" align="left">
            <table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="718">
                <tbody>
                    <tr>
                        <td valign="top" colspan="2"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.spcpweb.org"><img height="192" border="0" width="718" longdesc="SPCP" alt="Safer Pest Control Project" src="http://www.spcpweb.org/newsletter/Fall_2009_header1.gif" /></a></td>
                    </tr>
                    <tr>
                        <td width="638" valign="top">
                        <table cellspacing="15" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="638">
                            <tbody>
                                <tr>
                                    <td valign="top">
                                    <p class="headline"><strong>Protecting Children From Pesticides</strong></p>
                                    <p>Governor Quinn signed SB 1769 into law in August 2009. This law improves protections for Illinois children in schools and childcares from lawn chemicals. SPCP collaborated closely with the sponsoring legislators, Senator Heather Steans and Representative Karen May, to write and secure passage of the law. <strong>SPCP's advocacy has been critical to Illinois' leadership in establishing strong protections from pesticide exposure in schools and childcares.</strong></p>
                                    </td>
                                </tr>
                            </tbody>
                        </table>
                        </td>
                        <td width="80" valign="top">
                        <p><img height="33" border="0" width="80" longdesc="SPCP" alt="SPCP" src="http://www.spcpweb.org/newsletter/Fall_2009_header2.gif" /></p>
                        </td>
                    </tr>
                </tbody>
            </table>
            <!-- main content table -->
            <table cellspacing="15" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="718">
                <tbody>
                    <tr>
                        <td valign="top">
                        <p>In partnership with the Illinois Department of Public Health, SPCP recently completed a three-year statewide IPM training effort for Illinois&rsquo; schools and childcares. In the past year alone, we trained 300                       people representing over 500 schools and childcares, and impacted the lives of thousands of children. These                       seminars provide information and resources that enable schools and childcares to put an IPM program in                       place in compliance with Illinois law. <strong>Since its inception, SPCP has pioneered innovative programs like                         this one to create a supportive environment for IPM in Illinois.</strong> Unfortunately, this program was a victim of steep budget cuts by the state. We are working hard to identify new funding sources for this important                       work.<br />
                        <br />
                        </p>
                        </td>
                    </tr>
                </tbody>
            </table>
            <table cellspacing="15" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="718">
                <tbody>
                    <tr>
                        <td valign="top">
                        <p class="headline"><strong>Leading the Way on Bed Bug Education in Chicago</strong></p>
                        <p>Bed bugs are back and, like most major U.S. cities, Chicago is experiencing a resurgence. The calls started pouring into our office a year ago, and we have responded strongly - helping community organizations, tenants, landlords, and hotel owners understand the problem. <strong>SPCP has created unique resources about bed bug prevention and conducted training sessions on bed bugs for affected populations throughout the area.</strong></p>
                        <p>Bed bugs pose the greatest threat to date to SPCP's efforts to reduce pesticide use in low-income housing. This most tenacious pest, unlike common urban pests, requires a complex and coordinated effort between                             pest control operators, landlords and tenants to prevent the incorrect and unnecessary use of pesticides.   <strong>SPCP is working with the City of Chicago to track bed bug infestations and make sure that our message     on bed bug prevention and treatment is promoted in a coordinated citywide effort.</strong><br />
                        <br />
                        </p>
                        </td>
                    </tr>
                </tbody>
            </table>
            <table cellspacing="15" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="718">
                <tbody>
                    <tr>
                        <td valign="top">
                        <p class="headline"><strong>Training Homeowners and Turf Professionals on Natural Lawn Care</strong></p>
                        <p>SPCP held its fourth professional lawn care training in November 2009 in partnership with the Illinois Landscape Contractor Association and the Midwest Ecological Association. Over 100 turf professionals met for a day of training and education on the principles of natural lawn care. Taught by noted expert, Chip Osborne, attendees learned how to integrate natural lawn care principles into their management programs to both reduce pesticide use and improve turf quality. SPCP's training programs have increased the capacity of turf professionals to deliver high-quality sustainable lawns and helped decision-makers move away from chemical lawn care.</p>
                        <p>In addition to our professional training program, numerous natural lawn care workshops have been held                       by SPCP for homeowners. Each workshop focuses on the basic steps of natural lawn care. <strong>By educating                   homeowners, we are creating demand for lawn care services and products that are truly green.</strong><br />
                        <br />
                        </p>
                        </td>
                    </tr>
                </tbody>
            </table>
            <!-- end main content table -->                          <!-- footer table -->
            <table cellspacing="15" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="718">
                <tbody>
                    <tr>
                        <td valign="top">
                        <p class="headline"><strong>Housing Program Delivers Safer Solutions</strong></p>
                        <p>SPCP has increased its outreach on pesticide risks and safer alternatives to Spanish speaking communities.This population is neglected by large housing agencies due to language barriers, and is often underserved by government programs. Supported by the Searle Funds at the Chicago Community Trust, SPCP has educated residents, owners, social service agencies, and community organizations about the health risks of pests and pesticides. This year we trained 150 residents, 70 building owners and managers, and more than 60 community educators through this program. We also trained 32 housing inspectors who investigate complaints in low-income housing. <strong>SPCP is committed to providing outreach and training to our most vulnerable populations, so they have the information needed to safely and effectively control pests.</strong><br />
                        <br />
                        </p>
                        </td>
                    </tr>
                </tbody>
            </table>
            <table cellspacing="15" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="718">
                <tbody>
                    <tr>
                        <td valign="top">
                        <p class="headline"><strong>Providing Information Through Our Resource Center</strong></p>
                        <p>Did you know that SPCP created 15 factsheets this year? Plus, our website received over 200,000 visits, resulting in more than 10,000 factsheet downloads! Did you know that communities all over the world refer to SPCP's website for information, and that we collaborate with state health departments and public health agencies across the U.S. to adapt our factsheets for their communities? <strong>SPCP's Resource Center is an essential source of impartial information on alternatives to pesticides and pest specific topics including lice, bed bugs, ants, roaches, lawn care, mosquito management and lawn care.</strong><br />
                        <br />
                        </p>
                        </td>
                    </tr>
                </tbody>
            </table>
            <table cellspacing="15" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="718">
                <tbody>
                    <tr>
                        <td valign="top">
                        <p class="headline"><strong>Reducing Pesticide Use In Public Spaces</strong></p>
                        <p>Evanston, Orland Park, and Lisle &ndash; pilot cities for our Municipal Pesticide Reduction Program - have made significant progress in moving towards their goals to reduce pesticide use. Funded for the second year by the Grand Victoria Foundation, this pilot program is designed to guide and inspire municipalities to reduce the use of pesticides inside buildings and on public lands. Each of the cities is transitioning a park to natural lawn care, and both Evanston and Lisle have hosted SPCP-led workshops to educate homeowners and decision makers about how to reduce pesticide use. SPCP hopes to further influence municipal green initiatives by creating a toolkit to provide sample policies, contract language, and other resources to reduce their pesticide use. <strong>SPCP provides expert guidance and technical assistance to support policy changes that improve the health of communities.</strong><br />
                        <br />
                        </p>
                        </td>
                    </tr>
                    <tr>
                        <td valign="top">
                        <p class="headline"><strong>Future SPCP Newsletters</strong></p>
                        <p>In an effort to save trees and money, SPCP is moving towards electronic distribution of our newsletter. If you're not already on our email list, please send your email address to <a href="mailto:general@spcpweb.org">general@spcpweb.org</a> or call (773) 878-7378 x207. <strong>Thank you!</strong></p>
                        <p> <!-- AddThis Button BEGIN --> Please pass on our newsletter to your friends!&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="http://www.addthis.com/bookmark.php?v=250&amp;pub=prospectiv&amp;url=http://www.spcpweb.org/newsletter/SPCP_Fall_2009b.html&amp;title=Safer Pest Control Project - Fall 2009 Newsletter">   <img height="16" width="125" style="border: 0pt none ;" alt="Bookmark and Share" src="http://s7.addthis.com/static/btn/lg-share-en.gif" /> </a> <!-- AddThis Button END --> </p>
                        </td>
                    </tr>
                </tbody>
            </table>
            <table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" width="718">
                <tbody>
                    <tr>
                        <td valign="top"><a target="_blank" href="http://www.spcpweb.org"><img height="324" border="0" width="718" longdesc="SPCP" alt="www.spcpweb.org 773-878-7378" src="http://www.spcpweb.org/newsletter/Fall_2009_footer.gif" /></a></td>
                    </tr>
                </tbody>
            </table>
            <!-- end footer table -->                                               </td>
        </tr>
    </tbody>
</table>
<br />
<br />
</center>