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 be used to weigh the cost and benefit of pest and pollinator management in a holistic sense – accounting for potential interactions, and remedial actions (such as the avoidance of pesticide use during flowering). However, especially where management 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 in identifying the most beneficial action. To render this decision metric actionable, we further introduce the concept of pest and pollinator Action Thresholds (ATpe and ATpo). 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.

Integrated pest and pollinator management – expanding the concept

“…In practice, however, ETs for specific pests and cropping systems are often unavailable, outdated, or lack scientific support, possibly due to the extensive amount of data needed for their determination. In contrast, the goal of pollination management is to maintain pollinator populations above a certain threshold such that economic losses due to insufficient pollination are avoided, necessitating the development of a pollinator economic impact level (PEIL) analogous to the EIL (Flöhr et al 2020). The PEIL is a potentially useful metric to determine whether pollinator management actions are justified, but as with EILs, quantification of crop-specific PEILs requires substantial amounts of ecological and economic data.…”

Delivering Integrated Pest and Pollinator Management (IPPM)

“…To address such questions, and to unify economic decision making for IPPM generally, Flöhr et al [120] introduced a decision metric termed the 'joint economic impact level' (EIL) (see also Figure 2). The joint EIL integrates the use of pest economic injury levels [121], as wellestablished in IPM, with an equivalent derived for pollinators [120].…”

“…To address such questions, and to unify economic decision making for IPPM generally, Flöhr et al [120] introduced a decision metric termed the 'joint economic impact level' (EIL) (see also Figure 2). The joint EIL integrates the use of pest economic injury levels [121], as wellestablished in IPM, with an equivalent derived for pollinators [120]. Context-specific decision support can hence be offered on the basis of which action (managing pests, pollinators, both, or no action) provides the most economically beneficial solution for a given crop, based on current or future prospective needs (Figure 2b).…”

“…To facilitate IPPM decision making, field population monitoring is required to render the above metrics actionable. .. As part of this process, the conjoint use of pest and pollinator action thresholds (AT pe and AT po ) is therefore recommended [120] (Figure 2a). Establishing empirical pollinator action thresholds for crops, and active monitoring of pollinators as a routine on-farm activity, calls for researchers and stakeholders to adopt new practices and behaviours [120].…”

“…As such, foundational actions in the IPPM framework (darker colours) provide a generally more favourable basis for the long-term prevention of pest and pollinator-imposed yield gaps, as compared to lower priority actions towards the tip (lighter colours) which ideally should receive more sparing use. support metrics for pollinator management, i.e., the pollinator EIL ('economic impact level') and pollinator action threshold [120]; developed as counterparts to the pest EIL ('economic injury level') and pest action threshold used in IPM. These metrics provide an economic basis to unify what are otherwise disparate impacts on yield (i.e., yield loss due to pest damage; yield limitation due to pollination deficit), and to thereby integrate the decision-making goals underlying IPM and pollinator management.…”