Yes, Vector Control is back, having had their funding renewed by The Suffolk County Legislature.  So these next three days, as will be the case every two weeks throughout the summer, the copters will be flying again.   We can only hope for the sake of our marshes, that this year it is for the last time.

Please send your complaints about Vector Control copters strafing your neighborhoods and our marshes here:   Vector Control Complaints.    It’s really a county form to complain about mosquitoes, but we are taking what we can get!

Mosquito spraying destroys marsh habitat and in so doing makes the mosquito problem worse.   The best defense against mosquitoes is nature — dragonflies, fish fry to eat the larvae, bats, purple martins.   Worse, this spraying is not at all connected to public health concerns:   West Nile is carried only by fresh water mosquitoes, the ones that typically hatch right in your backyard.    The spraying is in fact being done to control a nuisance — people are being bitten by salt water mosquitoes hatching in marshes close to summer homes and beaches.

Why won’t Suffolk County embrace the science on this and abandon the futile and destructive practice of mosquito spraying in favor of marsh restoration, so that we can bring back the mosquito’s natural predators?   That would also go a long way towards improving coastal resiliency, which is critical to Long Islanders.   Healthier marshes can take more energy out of storm waves, and protect those nearby.

Why is Suffolk County still using methoprene, an insecticide that is illegal now in Connecticut under most circumstances because it is an ‘arthropod growth inhibitor,’  i.e. insects, spiders, and crustaceans (think lobsters).  It kills a lot more than just mosquitoes.

Here is the press release from Suffolk County as to where the scheduled spraying is to be done.    Use the complaint option to send a message:   Please apply science to our environmental issues rather than pouring toxins on the problem.   Bring back healthy marshes!

SUFFOLK COUNTY
DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SERVICES
NEWS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: CONTACT: Grace Kelly-McGovern 
July 10, 2017 631-854-0095

The Suffolk County Department of Public Works’ Division of Vector Control plans to treat parts of the following marshes by helicopter to control mosquito larvae. Should weather conditions prevent completion of the work, it will be continued on the next suitable day.

Time and date of the application: July 11-13, 2017, 6:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. 
Method of application: Low altitude, large droplet liquid application
Name of Pesticide: VectoBac 12AS Liquid Concentrate (Bti – Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis) and Altosid Liquid Larvicide Concentrate (Methoprene)
Approximate location(s):

Marshes that will be treated are marked “Yes.”

Town of Babylon	Treat?	Town of Brookhaven (cont.)	Treat?
Sore Thumb	Yes	Fireplace Neck	Yes
Oak Beach	Yes	Wertheim NWR	Yes
Oak Beach North		Manor of St. George
West Gilgo	Yes	Smith Point North	Yes
Gilgo	Yes	Johns Neck Creek	Yes
Cedar Beach	Yes	Mastic Beach	Yes
Cedar Beach Golf Course	Yes	Pattersquash Island
Oak Island	Yes	Town of Southampton
Ox/Helicopter Island		Stokes Poges	Yes
Gilgo Island		Jagger Lane	Yes
Town of Islip		Apacuck Point	Yes
Robert Moses CG Station	Yes	Moneybogue Bay	Yes
Clam Pond	Yes	Westhampton Dunes	Yes
Captree	Yes	Dune Rd (Overton)	Yes
Gardiner Park	Yes	Meadow Lane	Yes
Admiralty/Isbrandtsen		North Haven
Scully	Yes	Iron Point
Seatuck NWR	Yes	North Sea	Yes
Islip Preserve	Yes	Town of East Hampton
Quintuck Creek	Yes	Napeague	Yes
Heckscher State Park	Yes	Beach Hampton	Yes
Timber Point		Accabonac Harbor	Yes
Idle Hour	Pending	Town of Riverhead
Pepperidge Hall	Pending	Indian Island	Yes
Ludlows Creek	Yes	Overlook – Aquebogue	Yes
West Oak Recreation	Yes	Crescent Duck Farm	Yes
West Sayville GC	Pending	Aquebogue Farm	Yes
Namkee Creek	Yes	Millar Farm	Yes
Town of Brookhaven		Union Ave
Sayville YC	Yes	Pier Avenue
Stillman Creek	Yes	Town of Southold
Pine Neck Ave. (Swan River)	Yes	New Suffolk	Yes
Roe Ave. (Mud Creek)	Yes	Great Hog Neck	Yes
Abets Creek	Yes	Kerwin Blvd.	Yes
Hedges Creek	Yes	Pipes Neck Creek	Yes
Lyman Marsh	Yes	Pipes Cove	Yes
Bellport Bay	Yes	Town of Smithtown
Beaverdam Creek	Yes	Sunken Meadow

The products used by Vector Control are registered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation and are applied in accordance with the required state and federal permits.

No precautions are recommended to prepare for this spraying, as the helicopter will be flying at a very low level over marsh areas and taking other precautions to control drift into inhabited areas. Human exposure from this operation is unlikely and the products involved have no significant human toxicity.

For current and future notices and/or further information:
• Suffolk County Division of Vector Control 631-852-4270
• Suffolkcountyny.gov/Depar…/PublicWorks/VectorMosquitoControl
• Vector Control and Wetlands Management Long-Term Plan

suffolkcountyny.gov 
Facebook.com/SuffolkCountyHealthServices 
Twitter.com/SuffolkCoHealth

---