Mosquitos Under Control, At Least for Now

BEESLEY’S POINT – Mosquitos are a problem with which many are familiar. A flurry of social media posts and anecdotes on the subject were exchanged in recent days among neighbors in the northern sections of the county. From Upper, Dennis and Ocean City down as far south as Avalon and Court House, complaints rang out as testament to the beyond-annoying situation of hordes of mosquitoes attacking people and pets.
They used phrases such as “the miserable mosquito problem” and one person commented that they couldn’t “even take my dog out for a walk because we’re both being hounded by the mosquitos.” 
Residents were desperate for the county to come to their area to spray in an attempt to get the infestation under control. 
And spray they did.
Beginning Sept. 22, from the Chadwyn development in Seaville onward to Klains Lane, Stagecoach Road, Evergreen Drive and Hope Corson Road, residents were pleased to get some relief from the pests.
County Mosquito Control emails went out to those residents who had signed up for this service. The emails announced spraying details. Residents saw the spraying in the evening hours and noted a small white truck emitting a thin white mist of pesticide to combat the mosquitos. 
According to information on the county’s website, the mosquito control department operates under the state’s pesticide control regulations which it terms “extensive.” The state regulates notification and surveillance issues. 
“The revised regulations have resulted in a slowdown of our response time to your adult mosquito problems,” the county’s website reads. 
“Data from our increased surveillance efforts must be tabulated before a decision to spray can be made . . . and the Department is required to post spray information on our website,” they continued. “Additionally, we must call all those requesting notification a minimum of 12 hours in advance of any adult mosquito spray application. Weather and wind conditions must also be considered prior to initiating a spray application. If conditions are not favorable, the whole surveillance and notification process must be repeated.”
Despite the stipulations, spraying commenced as scheduled. The county indicated that the pesticides used will be those recommended by the state Agricultural Experiment Station. Its website lists several approved formulas with their chemical designations publicly available. 
The chemicals are disseminated through low volume or ultra-low volume techniques and are delivered from the ground by truck or hand-held equipment, or from the air by aircraft. 
Given residents’ satisfaction with the county’s spray efforts, the mosquito control department can count it a mission accomplished. 
As the department advises though, “mosquito control is everyone’s responsibility; please do your part by preventing standing water from accumulating on your property.”
Thoughts on mosquitos? Let Camille Sailer know via email at csailer@cmcherald.com.