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Gatineau’s annual battle against nuisance mosquitoes resumed last week as low-flying aircraft started spraying four city wards in the former city of Gatineau.
Councillor Yvon Boucher said residents of his Rivière Blanche ward seldom went outside during the summer until the city began aerial warfare against mosquitoes in 1996. The spraying could continue until mid-May.
The city has a $1.2-million, five-year contract with GDG Environnement to spray parts of Rivière Blanche, McLaurin Bay and nearby wetlands using light aircraft, helicopters and hand-held sprayers.
Each household in the area will pay a $14 “mosquito tax” to have the area between Montée Paiement and Montée Min-eault sprayed with bacillus thuringiensis israelensis, usually called Bti.
According to Health Canada’s Pest Management Regulatory Agency, the soil bacterium has no effect on humans, birds, fish, animals or other insects, but destroys the stomachs of mosquito and blackfly larvae that hatch in water.
The larvae stop feeding within hours and usually die within a few days. Bti is a variety of bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) that is used to control other types of insects, particularly moths; however, Bti targets mostly mosquitoes and blackflies and does not kill larval stages of “higher” flies.
Mr. Boucher said last week his popularity with voters increased because of the mosquito control program.
“Before the spaying, we had no house construction because you could not put your nose outside during July,” Mr. Boucher said. “Now you can sit outside as late as 10 p.m. and have a beer or a coffee without being bitten.
“Before that, you couldn’t sit outside even in the afternoon. Now the quality of life has improved here because we control 80 to 85 per cent of mosquitoes.”
René Ladouceur, a retired contractor who lives near Rivière Blanche, said builders have been able to complete more than 1,500 houses since the mosquito control program began.
Gatineau spokesman Pascal Laplante said the city does not control mosquitoes that spread West Nile virus because the Quebec government does not recommend or subsidize it.
Meanwhile, Ottawa’s public health department has authorized the use of Methoprene granules in catchbasins and ditches where there is standing water to control mosquitoes that spread West Nile virus. The city will spend about $800,000 to treat pools of standing water and 100,000 catchbasins three times during the spring and summer.
Jean-Guy Albert, a program administrator for the department, said the chemical prevents mosquito larvae from reaching the adult stage. This is the fourth year the city has used the product.
The city will use Bti to treat storm water retention ponds where mosquito larvae are found.
Five birds and two humans tested positive for West Nile virus in Ottawa in 2006. Two Ottawa residents were treated for the virus in 2005.