Back from Vacation....

But since most people are at the AMCA today...probably no worries for missed traffic!

The Annual Dance: Reporting Back to City Council

staugustine.com: the oldest city's home on the Net:

"But less positively, the two consultants recommended that the district switch from using organo-phosphate chemicals to ones used by most other Florida counties but banned in Europe.
The two consultants also reported that the Ponte Vedra Beach station facility, now closed, was not repairable due to rust, and that staff morale was down due to press reports of board infighting.

Activist Ed Slavin of St. Augustine attacked the report, saying Dame and Beidler had performed 'an exercise in good-old-boy issues' and were practicing 'junk science' because they had avoided taking on developers by not addressing vacant land that contains ponds or other waterways.

This is what kills me. You have two people who have nearly 80 years of mosquito control experience under their belts. You have city council people who are influenced by activists armed with all the stuff they find on the internet, because if you read it on the internet, it must be true.

Tie it all in with lazy reporting, see above, and you have a muddying of the facts and no way for a consumer to make an informed decision. They recommend consolidating, and are getting flack for getting rid of OPs in favor of the products being used all over the state (and gee reporter, thanks for clearing up what the products are), and getting new equipment to treat unreachable areas. Aren't those all good things?

Missouri officials start control program, concerned about West Nile

Health Officals Concerned Over 2009 West Nile Virus Season

People already reporting bites in Missouri. And it's March. This does not bode well. You hear that, politicians?

Austin Minn considers cutting mosquito spraying

Postbulletin.com: Rochester, MN

More of the same -- mosquito control is an easy, if short-sighted cut. But I just want to let these politicians know...you'll be getting a lot of angry calls this year if people can't enjoy their backyards because it's too buggy.

Just saying.

AdelaideNow... SA scientists can predict dangerous mosquito plagues

AdelaideNow... SA scientists can predict dangerous mosquito plagues:

Excellent news out of Australia...these kinds of predictive models can be a tremendous asset in mosquito control efforts.

"The warning system could be the latest weapon in the fight against dengue and Ross River fever, University of Adelaide ecologist Associate Professor Corey Bradshaw says.
'This model is a tool that helps predict when there is going to be a higher-than-average outbreak so that population control efforts can be implemented when they are going to be most effective and are most needed,' he said.
The researchers analysed 15 years of data on the northern Australian mosquito that transmits the Ross River and Barmah Forest viruses. They compared population size to environmental factors, such as tides and rainfall.
'Basic environmental monitoring data can be coupled with relatively simple population models to assist in predicting the timing and magnitude of mosquito peaks which lead to disease outbreaks in human populations,' Associate Professor Bradshaw said."

Bad news for Florida Mosquito funding

Budget Crunch Takes Bite Out Mosquito Control Funding - Central Florida News 13

I think we're going to see a lot of this sort of thing this year. With many states in bad financial positions due to the economic downturn, you're going to see a lot of them go for the budget with a hatchet.

Unfortunately, too many people see mosquito control as "optional" -- but this is just poor planning. Cut monitoring, larviciding and adult control, and you're setting yourself up for a nuisance problem at best, a health crisis at worst.

I wish I had answers for these states, counties and other local governments put into these positions, but I predict that we're going to see big problems from mosquito-borne disease this year if control funding gets slashed across the board.

Mark it.

Dengue Fever Drugs in the Works

Novartis Aims to Have Dengue Fever Drugs in Clinical Trials by 2011 - WSJ.com

Interesting news from Novartis. Dengue rears its ugly head in the south US from time to time, usually in Texas. In our West Nile-endemic society, which infects thousands, it's good to remember that WNV is really a relatively mild vector-borne disease. From the article: Dengue infects 50 MILLION each year.