Mosquito Control

Mosquito Control Program Components

The Mosquito Control Program consists of four components:

• Education and Information: This component consists of cultural practices for mosquito larva reduction such as applying repellents and reducing mosquito breeding sites. Integrated Pest Management is the balanced use of cultural, biological, and chemical procedures that are environmentally compatible and economically feasible to reduce pest and/or disease-carrying populations to a lower level.
• Surveillance: Surveillance identifies locations where mosquito populations are building, and entails the trapping of mosquito specimens that are tested for viruses.
• Larviciding: This is the daytime treatment of standing water areas that breed mosquitoes.
• Adulticiding: This is the evening spraying of residential streets to reduce the number of adult mosquitoes.

The Kent City Health Department conducts this program because mosquitoes are known to carry diseases such as Encephalitis and Malaria, and viruses such as West Nile, Chikungunya, Zika.