The Joint Economic Impact Level (jEIL): A Decision Metric for Integrated Pest and Pollinator Management

Abstract

Integrated Pest and Pollinator Management (IPPM) advocates a pollinator-friendly approach to Integrated Pest Management (IPM), with emphasis on the need to protect pollinators from the harmful effects of chemical pesticides. However, in order to link the goals of IPM and pollinator management both more formally and comprehensively, we introduce here a unified decision metric, termed the joint Economic Impact Level (jEIL). The joint EIL integrates the use of economic injury levels, as well-established in IPM, with a proposed pollinator equivalent; the Pollinator Economic Impact Level (PEIL). This joint metric can hence be used to weigh the cost and benefit of pest and pollinator management in a holistic sense – including where these practices interact, and remedial actions (such as the avoidance of pesticide use during flowering) are taken. However, especially when priorities are unclear (when biocontrol and pollination services trade off; flower strips exacerbate pest injury; pests and pollinators show non-linear effects on yield); the joint EIL can be of particular value to identify the most beneficial action. To render this decision metric actionable, we further introduce the concept of pest and pollinator Action Thresholds (AT pe and AT po). We follow theoretical description of these metrics with a practical example for strawberry, to demonstrate calculation of a joint EIL in support of IPPM decision making. As a whole, the joint EIL provides a flexible framework for integrated decision making, in support of timely management action. This decision metric (supported by a forthcoming jEIL tool) could hence be of broad practical value for farmers, agricultural advisors, researchers, and commercial and governmental agencies.

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