Monday, August 30, 2004
In an effort to reduce very high populations of salt marsh mosquitoes, the Atlantic County Office of Mosquito Control has scheduled an air spray application of the eastern portions of Galloway Township and Port Republic for Wednesday evening, September 1, between 5:00 PM and 8:00 PM, weather permitting. If weather conditions are unfavorable at that time, the application will be rescheduled for Thursday evening, September 2, between 5:00 PM and 8:00 PM.
The spray area will target the highest concentration of mosquitoes, adjacent to their breeding areas on the salt marsh. A large brood of salt marsh mosquitoes hatched following heavy rains two weeks ago, many of which have now successfully emerged, creating a considerable nuisance. Landing counts have exceeded 60 mosquitoes per minute in some areas. Reducing their numbers will also help reduce the transmission of mosquito-borne diseases, such as West Nile virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis that have been detected in our region in the form of positive mosquito samples and positive horse cases.
The air spray application will consist of a very low volume of malathion applied at the rate of three ounces per acre. It will be sprayed by aircraft from Chanese Lane north along Route 9 and Old New York Road to Port Republic and east to the salt marsh. A map of the spray area is available on the county Web page at: www.aclink.org/PublicWorks/mosquito.
Neither the federal Environmental Protection Agency nor the state Department of Environmental Protection requires relocating or taking special precautions during mosquito control spraying with this product. Some people, however, may prefer to avoid or minimize exposure by staying indoors, keeping windows shut, shutting off room air conditioners and window fans during spraying, keeping children's toys indoors as well as pets and their supplies.
For more information on spray activities call the Atlantic County Office of Mosquito Control at (609) 645-5948. Up-to-the-minute spray schedules are also available on the West Nile virus information line at 1-877-6-4FACTS, 24 hours a day.