The Delaware General Health District uses an Integrated Pest Management Program to protect the local population from mosquito-borne diseases such as West Nile Virus and La Crosse Encephalitis. This program includes:

 • Public education: The local health district promotes the Ohio Department of Health’s “Fight the Bite” information campaign. All residents are asked to help “Fight the Bite” by eliminating mosquito breeding pools and taking personal precautions against bites. For information or a group presentation, phone the health district at 740-368-1700.

• Abatement of breeding pools: Emptying water from containers, tires, tarpaulins and other collection spots is the most effective way to prevent mosquito-borne diseases. The health district offers advice on how to dry up places where mosquitoes can breed.

• Larviciding: Large areas of shallow standing water can be treated with larvicide to kill mosquito larvae. Property owners can buy larvicide (marketed as “Mosquito Dunks”) at hardware stores. In some instances, health district personnel can assist in larviciding large wet areas on publicly owned land.

• Surveillance: The Environmental Health staff traps mosquitoes nightly during warm-weather months, and collects dead crows and blue jays reported by Delaware County residents. The mosquitoes and bird carcasses are submitted to the state laboratory for disease testing. Collection of bird carcasses might stop before the end of summer, but we still ask all residents to report dead birds all summer.

·  Fogging: The Health District fogs neighborhoods to kill mosquitoes when a mosquito-borne human disease is detected, either through the above surveillance methods or when a human disease case is confirmed. Click here for Fogging schedule.

Click here for local West Nile Virus (WNV) brochure.

Click here for more information on WNV

Click here for information on WNV and Breastfeeding

Click here for information on WNV and Horses

Click here for information on WNV and Dogs and Cats

Click here for information on testing and treating WNV in Humans

Delaware General Health District employees certified as pesticide applicators, supervise the use of the fogging machines, which are carried on the Health District’s marked white pickup trucks with amber beacons. The fogging is done on public streets and roads and other publicly owned property.

Anyone who does not want fogging at their residence can call the Health District at
740-368-1700 to be placed on the “no-fog list.” Anyone who wants to request fogging in
their neighborhood should contact their municipal or township office.

Mosquitoes are a public health concern because they spread diseases including La Crosse Encephalitis and West Nile virus. In Ohio, 132 people have been infected with West Nile virus from 2005 through