Allegheny County Health Department to begin killing mosquito larvae
The Allegheny County Health Department will begin trying to kill mosquitoes before they even take flight.
Throughout April and continuing into May, the health department's Housing and Community Environment Program will treat more than 50 wetlands across 20 municipalities, targeting mosquito larvae.
The health department says it'll use Altosid XR, a biological larvicide that disrupts the life cycle of mosquitoes and midges without harming humans, pets, fish or other aquatic life.
The health department will also hit the urban mosquito habitats with a citywide catch basin treatment. Starting May 19, crews will treat over 13,500 storm drains and catch basins — which are ideal mosquito breeding grounds — in Pittsburgh, Bellevue, Millvale, McKees Rocks, Mount Oliver and Wilkinsburg.
"Among our many management practices to control mosquito populations, our annual spring wetland and catch basin treatments are some of the most effective," said vector control specialist Nick Bladauf. "This allows us to stop mosquitoes from ever becoming the flying, biting pests people dread."
Mosquitoes can carry diseases like West Nile virus, though most infected people don't feel sick. About 1 in 5 people who are infected develop symptoms and about 1 out of 150 develop a serious, sometimes fatal, illness, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Residents who notice potential mosquito breeding grounds like standing water in yards, tire piles, neglected pools or clogged rain gutters are encouraged to file a complaint online or call 412-350-4046.
