G.I.S. Technology Uses in Urban Pest Prevention and Control

Abstract:
Initially designed and developed as a cartography tool for urban planning and management, Geographical Information (G.I.S.) Technologies can be a very powerful way for prediction, prevention, and pest control operations. Health-Madrid works on corporative GIS system as a way to manage pest control operations and guarantee quality information distribution between different municipal departments that collaborate in integrated pest management (IPM-IVM) objectives (planning, environment, health, education departments). It is important to have information about distribution and frequency of real/potential pests and vectors in the city, because we need to be able to produce vector risk maps. To get this information is fundamental to have good quality human and database input resource structure. These dates need to be transformed in information for vector management and to make decisions. GIS-based informatic corporative software allows date interpretation, spatial epidemiologic analysis and provides dynamic thematic maps. We think it is important to introduce theese kinds of tools and encourage their use in the urban pest control.