Healthy Environment

Beaches

Indoor Air Quality

Lead

Mold

Mosquito Borne Diseases

Rabies

Radon

Shellfish

Tick Borne Diseases

Mosquito Borne Diseases

In recent years, there has been much focus on the incidents of mosquito borne diseases, particularly West Nile Virus and Eastern Equine Encephalitis. There are steps you can take to reduce the presence of mosquitoes on your property – mainly reducing standing water. Even a little bit of standing water – what might accumulate in the saucer of a plant pot after a rainstorm – can be an active breeding ground for mosquitoes.  Other places that could be good mosquito breeding grounds include:

• Discarded tires
• Rain barrels, buckets, empty cans
• Abandoned boats
• Clogged roof gutters
• Bird baths
• Abandoned or untreated swimming pools

Section 19-13-B31 of the Connecticut Public Health Code states that “no person shall maintain or permit to be maintained any pond, cesspool, well, cistern, rain barrel or other receptacle containing water or accumulation of stagnant water in such a condition that mosquitoes may breed therein or may injure health or cause offense to other persons”.

If you need assistance or advice treating standing water on your property, a District Sanitarian can help. Ledge Light Health District has purchased a supply of larvacide briquettes that can be used to treat standing water on private property. This larvacide prevents mosquitoes from developing into adults. A District Sanitarian will visit your property and apply the larvacide to the area of standing water.  The treatment will last approximately 30 days. Contact Steve Mansfield, Assistant Director, Environmental Health Services for more information.

West Nile Virus

West Nile Virus is a mosquito borne viral infection that is transmitted by the culex species of mosquito. Most people infected with the virus experience no symptoms; however, the disease may be serious or even fatal. Certain populations such as the very young, the elderly and the immune-compromised may be a special risk.

Eastern Equine Encephalitis

Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE) is a rare but serious disease caused by a virus that is transmitted by mosquitoes. To date, there has never been a document human case of EEE in Connecticut, although the virus has been found in trapped mosquitoes.