Mosquito populations are not expected to increase due to recent small rains in St. Charles Parish.
Steve Pavlovich, with Mosquito Control Services, said that it would take much more standing water to lead to mass hatching of millions of mosquito eggs on the ground.
“We’ve had such harsh drought conditions that even these rains that we’ve been having are small enough that the moisture is quickly soaking into the ground and not persisting in pools or pockets,” Pavlovich said. “But if we continue to have small rains, it may moisten the soil enough and more water may hold in woodland pools.”
Despite the fact that populations have been kept at bay, Pavlovich said aerial spraying of insecticide will take place this weekend in preparation for the parish’s July 4th celebrations.
The aerial spraying will mostly take place in the Destrehan and Luling areas, near both Bridge Parks and on the levees.
“This is mainly just for reduction because so many people are going to be in those areas,” he said.
The insecticide sprayed from planes will be the same chemical that is sprayed from trucks in regular neighborhood treatments. Pavlovich said that residents can take shelter indoors if they want to reduce their exposure to the chemical, but that it is not something they need to be especially fearful of.
He said the aerial application is done on large areas, such as cane fields and wooded areas, because it allows for deeper penetration of the chemicals.
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