California Apartment Association

By AMY DREW THOMPSON

On the heels of the vampire trends in pop culture, bed bugs are back. And they’re in it for the long haul.

What began as a scourge reinfesting the cities of the Eastern seaboard has moved steadily westward, enjoying human blood meals along the way. The Golden State, the experts say, has not yet seen the worst of it.

“Increased travel, increased use of second-hand items, changes in indoor pest management practices and pesticide resistance within some bed bug populations are potential factors driving their resurgence,” says board-certified entomologist Andrew M. Sutherland, Ph. D, and the Bay Area integrated pest management adviser to the University of California Cooperative Extension Alameda County. “We expect increases in incidence for years to come in California.”

If residents in multi-family housing communities are sleeping fitfully, so too are owners and managers as they deal with the difficulties of prevention, detection and elimination. Once ensconced, bed bugs are exceedingly difficult – and expensive – to evict.

CAA, in conjunction with the University of California, is working hard to help the apartment community win the war against these uninvited guests. Members are encouraged to get educated, pass information on to tenants and open the lines of communication to allow information’s free flow. Taking the California bed bug survey is a phenomenal first step toward victory.

Click the link below for the rest of the story in the digital version of Apartment Management magazine.

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