On April 9, the Town of Marion was notified that The Plymouth County Mosquito Control Project organization would be conducting aerial pesticide application throughout the following week through April 18. The county-wide effort comes just as temperatures begin to rise and is done primarily to destroy mosquito larvae before they can hatch.
Per Marion Board of Health, the application is done only over wetlands and not residential zones, between 5:30 am and 3:00 pm. The group would service about 500 acres of Marion wetlands at the same time as 400 acres in Pembroke to the north.
For this pre-summer application, Vectobac is released via plane, specifically a red and white Cessna Ag-Wagon.
This initiative has been longstanding, as it received heightened funding following the West Nile Virus outbreaks of 2022 and other recent spread of Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE or “Triple E”). Rochester also often sees spraying, though the organization has not yet announced when that will begin.
According to the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the Tri-Town is uniform in its current risk levels. There is a “Low” risk of EEE, though still above the lowest level of “remote.” For WNV, there is a moderate risk. The last positive cases of either were both reported last September, meaning the current likelihood of contact is negligible, though it will rise once mosquitos become more prevalent as temperatures climb.
Anti-larvae initiatives will continue throughout the warm season as professionals and health experts keep mosquito levels at bay. For more information on these programs, you can visit plymouthmosquito.org or the state’s site at mass.gov/mosquito-bourne-diseases.
By Sam Bishop