2. The Legislature finds and declares that in 1992, the National Parent Teacher Association passed a resolution calling for the reduced use of pesticides in schools and calling on policy makers to consider all possible alternatives before using any pesticides; that the National Education Association and many national public interest organizations have announced support for reducing or eliminating pesticide use in schools; that the State, as well as 87 local government entities throughout the State, have adopted integrated pest management policies for their buildings and grounds; that childhood cancer is continuing to increase at the alarming rate of one percent per year; that the overall incidence of childhood cancer increased 10 percent between 1974 and 1991, making cancer the leading cause of childhood death from disease; and that approximately 4,800,000 children in the United States under the age of 18 have asthma, the most common chronic illness in children, and the incidence of asthma is on the rise.

The Legislature further finds and declares that children are more susceptible to hazardous impacts from pesticides than are adults; that numerous scientific studies have linked both cancer and asthma to pesticide exposure; that the United States Environmental Protection Agency has recommended the use of an integrated pest management system by local educational agencies, which emphasizes nonchemical ways of reducing pests, such as sanitation and maintenance; that integrated pest management is an effective and environmentally sensitive approach to pest management that relies on common sense practices; that integrated pest management programs use current, comprehensive information on the life cycles of pests and their interaction with the environment, and that this information, in combination with available pest control methods is used to manage pest damage with the least hazard to people, property and the environment and by economical means; and that integrated pest management programs take advantage of all pest management options possibly including, but not limited to, the judicious use of pesticides; that a notification process should be established for schools under which each student, parent, guardian, staff member, and teacher shall be notified of a pesticide application; that parents and guardians have a right to know that there is an integrated pest management system in their children’s schools; that an integrated pest management system provides long-term health and economic benefits; and that parents and guardians should have a right to be notified in advance of any use of a pesticide in their children’s schools.

The Legislature therefore determines that it is in the public interest of all of the people of New Jersey that the schools in this State establish an integrated pest management policy.

L.2002,c.117,s.2.