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