This week, the Contra Costa Mosquito and Vector Control District reminds the public that with spring approaching, its time to begin thinking about swimming pool maintenance while dumping and training from the winter rains.
Neglected Swimming Pools are a Risk to Public Health
During the Great Recession, neglected swimming pools, which can produce up to 1 million mosquitoes each, put entire neighborhoods at risk of mosquito-borne illness all over Contra Costa County. As a public health agency, the Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District is working to prevent that from happening again. We ask that you maintain your swimming pool as best as you can, but if you see mosquito activity in your pool, contact the District immediately to request mosquitofish.
Mosquitofish are a natural predator of mosquito larvae which are young mosquitoes that develop in water.
- Each fish can eat several hundred mosquito larvae per day.
- Mosquitofish have become a valuable, natural tool for mosquito control.
- They have been used around the world to reduce the risk of mosquitoes for decades.
- The District raises approximately 1 million mosquitofish every year.
How To Request Mosquitofish
To request mosquitofish, call the District at 925-685-9301 or submit your request online.
- A District employee will inspect the property and if mosquitofish are necessary and appropriate, the employee will place the mosquitofish in the Contra Costa County water feature associated with the request.
- A District employee will respond to the request usually within five business days; however, wait times may increase as a result of changing workloads and staffing levels due to COVID-19.
It’s Time to Dump and Drain After the Rain
Our recent rainy weather contributed to the amount of standing water, not only in swimming pools, but in anything else that can hold water and can be found in a front or back yard. As county residents are sheltering at home, we’d like to ask you to walk around your property every few days and dump out or drain anything you find holding standing water.
If you find you are being bitten by mosquitoes while on your property, especially if you are being bitten during the day, please swat one of those mosquitoes, stick it in a plastic bag, and then contact the District to request a mosquito inspection. The District employee who arrives to inspect your property will use that dead mosquito in the bag as a sample for identification.
At this time, Contra Costa County is currently home to 23 different species of mosquitoes, but neighboring counties have found a new, invasive species of mosquito that has the ability to transmit Zika virus, dengue, and chikungunya. This is a day-biting mosquito, and that’s why it’s important that if you find you are being bitten during the day, please place a dead mosquito in a bag and contact the District.
For more information on the Costa Mosquito and Vector Control District, visit them at www.contracostamosquito.com
