Life BIOREPEM is a 52-month (initially 40) initiative designed to minimise the use of biocides by the municipalities of Fiumicino (RM, Lazio) and Francavilla al Mare (CH, Abruzzo) for pest control services. To achieve this objective, the project was set up to implement and assess large networks of ecological traps for the mass capture of rats and mosquitoes, managed through a specially developed web portal. The project, which costed 1,527,282 euros, demonstrated the effectiveness and feasibility of the implemented solution; over three years, we did not record any rodent or mosquito infestations at the sites protected with the traps, despite the absence of rodenticides or pesticides.

Overall, the partner municipalities have used 1489kg less rodenticide baits and 75 gr less rodenticide substance, as well as 1008 kg less insecticides (236 kg active substances) over the two full demonstration years, from July 2022 to September 2024.

To do this, we achieved results in three key sub-objectives:

Objective 1: Digitise municipal pest management and develop an information system to support decision-making. In Fiumicino, a network consisting of 108 devices has been established, along with 72 devices in Francavilla al Mare, to monitor 29 buildings and areas directly managed by the municipalities, including schools, senior centres, offices, tourist attractions, and museums. This network is overseen by the BIOREPEM web portal, designed to store and manage georeferenced information and data. Rodent traps within the system transmit real-time data directly to the portal, logging rodent captures, passages, and trap details. Pest control operators upload data during service visits using the platform’s mobile interface, documenting rat species identification and maintenance activities. Additionally, scientists involved in the project contribute information on collected mosquitoes and other pertinent data. This collaborative approach has enabled the municipalities to effectively monitor infestations through the BIOREPEM system, ensuring smooth operations without significant issues.

Objective 2: Demonstrate the effectiveness of the new system and its feasibility as an alternative to biocides to combat pests. The BIOREPEM system has been tested over 3 years (2021-2024) in the partner municipalities, resulting in the collection of 2 full years of data. Throughout this time, no biocides of any kind were used in the protected sites, and there were no infestations of either rats or mosquitoes. During the project, we captured a total of 405 rodents (including grey rats, black rats, and house mice); 15,481 adult mosquitoes; 102,511 eggs; 5,052 larvae; and 1,967 pupae, primarily of the species Aedes albopictus and Culex pipiens.

Objective 3: Enforce new pest management plans to further reduce the need for biocides. New management plans have been developed and implemented, including:

• ex-ante and ex-post monitoring of sites to be protected. The project produced a protocol with methods and types of data to be collected;
• implementation of preventive interventions (elimination of causes of infestation);
• use of the BIOREPEM web portal to manage traps and pest control services;
• use of the BIOREPEM mobile app for field data collection;
• Integrated Pest Management approach, in particular for mosquitoes, including mechanical traps, larvicides, ovitraps, monitoring, and engaging citizens and stakeholders.

The municipalities successfully managed the service according to the new plans for three years without using any biocides in the selected sites. This indicates that the procedures and plans developed are suitable for their intended purposes. Plans were reviewed and validated at the end of the project.

Other relevant objectives achieved are:

Objective 4: Facilitate the maintenance and development of the BIOREPEM model by partner municipalities. Promote its adoption by other municipalities. To achieve this objective we have acted on 3 main lines:

• We created tender specifications and Pest Management Plans to assist COMFIU and COMFRA in sustaining the system for the future. We will also support potential developments and seek new funding opportunities.
• Dissemination and transfer of the new approach to other public administrations: we transferred the BIOREPEM model to 82 municipalities during the project. Additionally, the ASL of Latina began replicating it in 2024 across 4 hospitals in 4 municipalities, and Amalfi started its replication in February 2025.
• Promote green public procurement of disinfestation and rodent control services: the project developed a proposal for Minimum Environmental Criteria (MEC), which was submitted to the Ministry of Environment. The MASE has officially initiated the definition process (Directorial decree no. 7 of 6/2/2025). The project also studied the environmental impacts of traps and services through an LCA and assessed the economic costs of the services in the two modalities (“traditional” and BIOREPEM).

Objective 5: Support the recognition and inclusion of chemical-free practices in the public and private sectors. We have disseminated and transferred the project model and results to key stakeholders in many ways: by organizing information seminars; by participating in fairs, events, and conferences; and by producing manuals, publications and videos. The municipality of Amalfi, for example, turned to us thanks to these communication activities. We have also raised awareness among the general public, reaching 300,200 people, of which at least 56,000 were within or near the project area, thanks to the Facebook page, website, YouTube channel, printed materials, and other communication activities. In Fiumicino, thanks to the “door-to-door” information activities carried out in 2024, we have obtained active collaboration from citizens in the ecological fight against mosquitoes. We have also established profitable collaborations with the pest control companies that worked on the project, which now “sponsor” Life BIOREPEM to their customers (thanks to this we were able to replicate our model at the ASL of Latina).

Objective 6: Enhance the image and credibility of municipal administrations. Support their commitment towards sustainability. In our model, the Municipality retains full control over disinfestation even if it is outsourced to contractors. The use of biocides is significantly reduced where the system is applied.