Social media has been abuzz with complaints from Northeast Denver residents about mosquitoes. Folks have been posting gripes and swapping ideas for combating the pesky insects, though other locals say it’s no worse than usual for this time of year.
“We certainly have a pretty good supply of early mosquitoes this year,” said Doug Kelley of Denver’s Department of Environmental Health. “We had a mild winter. We had a very early spring, and then a very wet spring. Conditions were very good for early breeding.”
Kelley noted that continued hot weather will take care of the some of the nuisance problems. Denver monitors mosquito populations and applies natural larvicides to mitigate the mosquitoes. The city does not spray adulticide, said Kelley, as the health concerns from spraying outweigh the benefits, particularly when there is little risk of West Nile virus. Kelley recommends residents carefully monitor their properties for any amount of standing water, wear repellent containing DEET, and cover up at dawn and dusk.
Lowry and Stapleton have their own community mitigation programs also. Keven Burnett, executive director of the MCA in Stapleton, noted “with the sheer amount of native area, wetlands, and open water, Stapleton is never going to be a place that is mosquito-free.”
The MCA works with contractors to apply larvicide strategically and it has a dedicated web page that details the efforts. Go to http://www.stapletoncommunity.com/what-we-do/mosquito-mitigation for comprehensive information on mosquito trapping and testing and larvacide locations in Stapleton.
