Winnipeg, MB - The City of Winnipeg is gearing up for another insect control season and began its environmentally friendly, aggressive mosquito larviciding program this week. Larviciding is the most effective approach to controlling mosquitoes, as it targets mosquito larvae in the aquatic stage before they emerge as adults.
“This spring, the ground is saturated which has resulted in a lot of standing water and the need for a substantial spring larviciding program for the control of the spring mosquito species,” said Ken Nawolsky, superintendent of insect control. “The good news is surveillance of standing water sites indicates low to moderate numbers of spring mosquito larvae species.”
This season’s mosquito control program will continue to be based on an environmentally mindful insect control strategy including larviciding, residual treatments, and when necessary, fogging, to supplement these ongoing measures. 180 staff working in the Insect Control Branch will deliver the key components of the mosquito control program including:
- A larviciding program that continues to be 100% biological and uses four larviciding helicopters,
- Monitoring and treating over 31,500 hectares of water area on an ongoing basis based on weather conditions,
- Monitoring for adult nuisance mosquitoes in New Jersey Light Traps beginning May 1, 2017 with the first trap counts posted on May 3, 2017 on the Insect Control website
- Fogging programs that will only be initiated when the requirements of the City policy, the AFA Guidelines, and the Provincial Pesticide Use Permit are met. If nuisance mosquito fogging is required, the program will be carried out using DeltaGard 20EW®, pending registration of the new product in Canada. Areas with highest nuisance mosquito populations will be prioritized first and 90 meter buffer zones will be respected. A 24-hour public notice will be issued prior to the start of a nuisance fogging program. Daily public notices will also be issued detailing where fogging will occur that night.
New procedure for larviciding with helicopters
Transport Canada Civil Aviation Division has updated the standards on the low flight waiver which allows the City to use contracted helicopters to apply larvicides at low altitudes. As a result, when larviciding is occurring in places where people congregate (e.g. athletic fields, larger parks, golf courses etc.) public access will be restricted to these areas 20 minutes before and during treatment. Treatment time generally ranges from 15 - 60 minutes. This new standard is solely due to the possibility that a helicopter could have mechanical troubles and is out of an abundance of caution.
The Insect Control Branch will try to minimize disruption to the public in the areas impacted by the new standards by posting signage which indicates the date and time of the planned treatment approximately 24 hours in advance of treatment, treating as early as possible in the morning and using longer lasting larvicides to limit the number of applications required over the season.
Buffer zones
Property owners not wanting insecticides applied on or adjacent to their principal residence may register as “Anti-Pesticide Registrants” for the adult nuisance mosquito control program. Those who wish to register must provide identification that ties the registrant to the address being registered for a buffer zone. A photocopy or scanned document such as a driver’s licence or a utility bill will suffice as acceptable identification proving primary residence. Remember - a 72-hour turnaround time is required.
There are four different options to register:
- In writing to the Insect Control Branch at 3 Grey Street, Winnipeg, MB R2L 1V2,
- By emailing 311 at 311@winnipeg.ca
- By faxing 311, and
- In person at 1539 Waverley Street.
Please note that since identification is required, registrations cannot be processed over the phone.
Do your part
Property owners are also encouraged to eliminate standing water on their properties by taking one of the following steps:
- Dump It! - containers
- Drain It! - eavestroughing or unused containers
- Cover It! - rain water collection containers
- Fill It! - low-lying areas
- Treat It! - biological larvicide
Phone and email notification
The Insect Control Branch offers an automated telephone and email notification system. Residents who register for this service will receive daily phone or email notifications during all fogging for adult mosquito control. To register for the automated email or telephone notification systems, citizens can go to City of Winnipeg - Register for Notification or call 311.
More information
For more information, please contact 311, open 24 hours every day by phone at 311 or by email at 311@winnipeg.ca, or visit the City’s Insect Control website.