Early tool in fight against EEE takes flight

BOSTON — It’s easy to recall how short last summer felt with so many activities canceled or postponed due to concerns of Eastern Equine Encephalitis.

Mosquito control efforts have already begun in Massachusetts, a way of getting ahead of a mosquito borne disease that claimed several lives last year and infected at least a dozen people.

A helicopter could be heard buzzing over Wrentham, Plainville and Foxboro, and elsewhere in Norfolk County Tuesday and Wednesday, outfitted with a special hopper containing small granular pieces that kill mosquito larvae in wetlands.

“It’s almost like a fertilizer spinner and they are shooting it out of the side and then they do lines with a GPS they are very accurate over the wetlands,” said David Lawson, Director of the Norfolk County Mosquito Control Program.

Lawson said there is more awareness around EEE but this 4,000 acre application isn’t done for that purpose but may impact the spread of the potentially deadly brain disease. The application is the first step in a season-long battle against mosquitoes and has been done in the county for 20 years, Lawson explained.

“This is primarily to control what is usually the biggest surge of mosquitoes which come out in late May, and early June,” Lawson explained.

He was quick to point out that this is different than mosquito spraying, that the granular being applied are only toxic to mosquitoes and black fly larvae.

For more information on EEE in Massachusetts, visit the state’s website here.

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