Bed bugs to be topic of educational session

Environmental Health director Jennine Wolf has organized a new educational meeting on bed bugs. The meeting will be held from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. April 9, in the Washington County Conservation Center at Marr Park.

One of the experts who will speak is Jeff Lipman of Lipman Law Firm in Clive. He is a nationally known expert on dealing with bed bugs and who is responsible for treating them.

According to the law firm's Web site, Lipman was involved in the first-in-the-nation class action lawsuit involving bed bugs filed in Iowa. That case was settled for $2,450,000. The law firm has handled additional class action suits since winning the first.

As Wolf said at a recent Bed Bug Task Force meeting, attendees will receive a lot of expensive legal advice for free. He will talk about the responsibilities of landlords and tenants.

The other speaker will be Dr. Dini Miller, an entomologist and professor of urban pest management at Virginia Tech. Wolf said that Miller is one of the leading bed bug experts in the country, and Miller has advised Wolf as Wolf tries to help people in the county cope with bed bugs.

Miller will talk about bed bug extermination method and what works.

Since only one in 10 pest control operators is treating bed bug infestations right, the information Miller provides will help attendees find a pest control company that uses effective methods.

This free meeting is for anyone who has problems or who might have problems with bed bugs.