Facility managers maintain building safety and professionalism by evicting Canada geese from grounds with non-lethal EPA-approved treatment

Commercial facilities require a level of safety and professionalism that’s difficult to achieve when dodging Canada geese droppings outside, or worse, tracking it into buildings.

In recent years, flocks of previously migratory Canada geese, drawn by food, water, and safety, have settled year-round on the grounds of many commercial, medical, and government facilities.  They have devoured turf, defecated abundantly, acted aggressively near nests, and left some areas virtually unusable.

“When you see a commercial facility’s lawns and sidewalks loaded with geese droppings, what’s that say about them before you walk in the door?” asks Ryan Smith, a branch manager at Enviroscapes, a landscape contractor operating in Ohio, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.  

“Facility and grounds managers will want to eliminate the potential liability of slip/fall accidents related to the droppings, or aggressive behavior if they nest,” adds Smith.  “They’ll also want to avoid the mess and clean up after clients or staff track droppings into professional buildings or sanitary environments.”

Since a single Canada goose can eat up to 3-lbs. of turf and leave up to 2 lbs. of droppings per day, a flock in residence can quickly eat turf down to its roots, leaving lawns prone to erosion and requiring replanting.  Excessive Canada geese droppings in ponds or bodies of water can also raise fecal coliform levels, diminishing water quality.

Not surprisingly, commercial facility managers are looking for the means to rid their grounds of the geese.  But because Canada geese are a protected species, this requires finding unique ways of getting the geese to “move out” without killing or harming them, while adhering to environmentally responsible facility operations.

“Although typical geese control methods such as barking dogs or loud noisemakers can temporarily scare the geese away, the techniques are less than appropriate in a commercial setting, and the geese return as soon as the threat is gone,” says Smith.

According to Smith, “Canada geese destroyed one commercial facility’s lawn in northeast Ohio, eating the grass down to its roots despite the use of dogs and even a remote controlled boat in a pond to scare them away.”

At that point, the commercial facility turned to an eco-friendly, EPA-approved goose repellent called FlightControl®Plus.  This spray-on solution is odorless, waterproof, and does not harm humans, vegetation or wildlife.  It uses a naturally occurring, environmentally safe compound called anthranquinone formulated by Arkion Life Sciences (www.flightcontrolcommercialbuildings.com).

The product is designed to both send the geese a visual warning, and provide a harmless, but unpleasant consequence for eating treated turf.  First, when sprayed on turf, the compound absorbs ultraviolet light, something the geese can see even though humans can't.  This sends a visual signal to the geese that something is wrong with their food.  Second, when geese sample treated turf it gives them a stomachache, a harmless but effective digestive irritation.  This reinforces the message that there's something wrong with the food, so they will avoid treated turf in the future.

A 20-acre commercial facility with ornamental lawns and four aesthetic ponds had over 200 Canada geese living on its grounds, according to Steve Kungle of The Goose Doctors, an Ohio-based geese control specialist.  A variety of barrier type systems such as streamers and pond fencing, as well as coyote decoys placed on the lawns failed to keep them away.

“The commercial facility’s clients and staff wanted to safely walk between buildings, as well as enjoy their aesthetic grounds for outdoor lunches or staff breaks,” says Kungle.  “They didn’t want to step in, sit on, or track goose droppings into buildings or their cars.” 

The facility manager also wanted to avoid having geese nest in shrubs near buildings because they can get territorially aggressive, says Kungle.

After treating specific areas of the commercial property the geese moved away from these areas.

“The geese population dropped from over 200 to about five within two weeks after using FlightControl,” says Kungle. 

For more info visit www.FlightControlCommercialBuildings.com.