Sparta Township: Office Of Mosquito Control Continues To Protect Sussex County

Press release from the Sparta Township:

July 17, 2021

(Newton, NJ) The current lockdowns in place to curtail spread of coronavirus will not prevent the performance of essential mosquito control activities in Sussex County. The Sussex County Office of Mosquito Control will continue its mission to protect the health, safety and welfare of Sussex County residents under modified operations and processes for the benefit of the public and mosquito staff. Currently the Office will remain open under normal operating hours, 8:00 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Residents who have mosquito related questions and/or complaints are encouraged to contact the Office of Mosquito Control by calling 973-940-5225, emailing mosquito@sussex.nj.us, or visiting the website at www.sussex.nj.us/mosquito. Inspections of private property for the abatement of artificial/man-made containers will be suspended until further notice. Also door hangers will not be left on complainants’ doors to indicate inspector findings. Residents can call 973-940-5225 for verbal reports of inspector findings. All other inspection and control activities, such as aerial and truck mounted spray applications, and disease surveillance will continue for the season as in previous years.

While the COVID-19 pandemic is still a great concern in our community, the Office of Mosquito Control wants to remind residents not to lose sight of the fact that other debilitating and potentially fatal diseases transmitted by mosquitoes, such as West Nile Virus, Eastern Equine Encephalitis and Jamestown Canyon virus, are also of concern in the county. According to the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), coronavirus cannot be transmitted by mosquitoes.

With the suspended service of the abatement of man-made habitats, it is strongly recommended that residents play a critical role in the elimination of standing water on private property. Please take the time to check your yard and empty standing water sources to avoid making a place for mosquitoes to develop. Small amounts of stagnant water provide an ideal location for mosquitoes to lay their eggs.

Sussex County residents are also encouraged to protect themselves from mosquitoes and the diseases that they carry by remaining indoors at dusk and dawn, wearing long sleeves and pants, and applying EPA-registered repellents according to label directions.

Protect Yourself From Mosquito-Borne Diseases! Dump, Drain, and Defend!

For more information on how to protect yourself, your home or the products used by the Office of Mosquito Control, please call 973-940-5225 or visit www.sussex.nj.us/mosquito.

This press release was produced by the Sparta Township. The views expressed here are the author’s own.