Official: Avoid becoming mosquito magnet

While Carson City's Environmental Health Division battles mosquitoes on the water and in the air, there is plenty that individuals can do to protect themselves and their homes during mosquito season.

Division Supervisor Dustin Boothe said common sense should prevail.

"Use DEET, stay away from the outdoors at dusk and dawn, wear protective clothing and light-colored clothing," Boothe said.

He also advised people to check around their property for places where mosquitoes might breed, such as buckets with standing water, a leaky swamp cooler or sprinkler.

"You can control what's on your own property," he said.

Boothe said there are two mosquito types to watch out for around here.

"The permanent-water mosquitoes are the ones biting at dusk and dawn," he said, "while the flood-water mosquitoes are more aggressive and bite at all hours."

Early this year, when the city budget was on the chopping block, the mosquito abatement program was one of the cuts that had to be made, but Boothe said the city has been able to keep the program alive through a couple of measures.

Employees do the work, but a $32,000 grant from the Carson Water Subconservancy District for fiscal year 2010-11 allowed his department to treat the Carson River corridor.

"When the river slows down, we start to see small pools forming, so we've been able to treat those," Boothe said. "Usually, the first part of the year we treat ranches like the Anderson and Silver Saddle."

The city's Public Works Department also was able to offer $75,000 through its storm water budget.

"We provide the manpower and they provide the line-item for the product we use. That restored all we had lost of our ongoing money," he said.

More treatments will be applied Wednesday, Boothe said.

"As our community has grown - especially with the bypass - they've developed new areas for breeding, where there is no natural competitor yet, such as fish and birds," he said.

His division conducts regular surveillance of known mosquito-breeding sources - Silver Saddle Ranch and Riverview Park, for instance, but residents can watch for areas the city might not know about, such as clogged storm drains, Booth said.

Carson City works with the Department of Agriculture as well as Washoe County's health division to test for mosquito-borne viruses. The three they watch for are West Nile virus, the St. Louis Encephalitis virus and the Western equine encephalitis virus.

"Washoe County conducted tests last week for our area, and they found none of those three," Boothe said.

Carson City uses a number of methods in its vector control program:

• An insect growth regulator called Altosid only affects mosquito larvae, preventing their development. It is effective for about 120 days.

• Agnique is used less frequently, but for large infestations. It destroys the surface tension of water so mosquitoes drown, but so do other insects.

• Fogging is used only when necessary, but it kills all flying insects.

Boothe said the city prefers the more ecofriendly method, but occasionally, strong methods are called for.

"We've come across pools of water that literally look black there are so many," he said.