State Senator Carl L. Marcellino (R, Syosset), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Environmental Conservation, held a two-part public hearing in Huntington and the Town of Oyster Bay late last week to address environment and public health concerns associated with last fall's mosquito spraying.

Last fall, an encephalitis-like virus, later identified as West Nile Virus, swept through the New York Metro area causing a great deal of concern. Because this was a mosquito-borne virus, many areas were sprayed with pesticides to kill off infected mosquitoes.

"The West Nile outbreak took many by surprise and policymakers did not have ample time to think about the full ramifications of spraying," said Senator Marcellino. "We need to look at what actions were taken last fall and what the health consequences were to our citizens, particularly our children."

At the hearing, Marcellino explained that the actions taken last year were done as a result of an emergency situation and one that the county was not prepared for. "We want to look forward and see what we can do better in the future so we do not make the same mistakes that we made last time," said Marcellino. "We need to improve the situation next time, if there is a next time and most everybody believes that there will be a next time and the mosquitoes will come back to visit us again."

A major concern of local residents and also one of Marcellino's is the safety of the pesticides that were sprayed during this past outbreak. Marcellino held this hearing primarily to find out what was being planned if this outbreak were to happen again and to see if alternatives are being sought out. "There are no safe pesticides. They are all dangerous chemical compounds and 'safe to use' does not mean safe to ingest or be overly exposed to them," said Marcellino. "The biochemistry of every living thing is very much the same. The mosquito's biochemistry, which these pesticides are designed to interact with are the same as you and me. Sometimes pesticides have to be used, and I know that. Last time, we were in an emergency situation which caused certain actions to be taken in response to it. At this point in time, it should not be an emergency anymore," said Marcellino.

Nassau County Department of Health Commissioner Dr. Kathleen Gaffney and mosquito expert Greg Terillion were present during the evening hearing to address many questions and concerns.

Gaffney explained that the outbreak was brought to her attention on Labor Day 1999. At this time, there was no definite answer as to what this disease was and what was actually causing it. "We knew that the symptoms of the disease included high fever, headache, inflammation of the brain, accompanied by confusion and change of mental status," explained Gaffney. "Patients also had a profound muscle weakness."

Late September, it was found that one-in-four mosquitoes were infected with the virus. "The risk was dramatically heightened," said Gaffney. "This led to the decision to spray."

A major problem with the decision to spray, according to Marcellino, was the lack of public notice. "We only sprayed after we were told we had to," said Gaffney in response to Marcellino's concerns. "We delayed it even longer because [Nassau County Executive Thomas] Gulotta, beyond what is required in the law, insisted that public notice occur. We waited to start the spraying and we also started with ground spraying, which we hope that everyone forgets. In Nassau County, we tried to have public notice and there were a lot of problems. We learned from that and we will not do certain things again."

A reason for the delayed reaction by Nassau County was the lack of research facilities available. Last fall, when dead birds were found in Nassau County, they were flown to Colorado to be tested and then the results were sent back to New York. This process took a lot of valuable time. Marcellino is concerned because of the lack of facilities in the state to do this kind of research. "We do not have a lab at the present time," he said. "We are trying to develop our own lab on Long Island to do our own testing, which is an important factor. In the shipping there are delays and it takes time to do. The closer to home that we do this, the better off we are."

According to a press release from Gulotta's office, "while the county continues to monitor and treat targeted mosquito breeding sites in Nassau's 650 storm water basins, 200 miles of fresh water streams, 70,000 streets basins and 50 ponds, residents must help protect themselves and their loved ones against disease-carrying mosquitoes."

Nassau County is currently working on introducing a plan called "Fight the Bite" in conjunction with New York State which will include public service announcements and mailings to keep residents informed. "A major part of the state's plan is public information and knowledge," said Gaffney.

"Every homeowner in Nassau County is part of the control program," said Gaffney. "Residents have to clean their gutters, [empty standing water in trash and garbage cans, buckets, old tires, plastic covers, toys, flower pots and any other site that may catch and hold water] and everyone must participate because it affects neighbors. The mosquito will not be in your backyard if you and your neighbors do not have standing water with organic matter in it. If you do, it is guaranteed that you will have mosquitoes."

Greg Terillion explained at the hearing that gutters are a major breeding site for mosquitoes. "The household mosquito can live in the smallest amount of water, commonly in the gutters of a house. Over the winter, they lay about 50 to 400 eggs," said Terillion.

Another factor that Gaffney warned against are mosquito repellents. "They are a useful adjunct, but you should not rely on them and certainly you should not be spraying them in children's faces. Parents should not spray their children with repellent, they should spray their own hands and rub it on their children," explained Gaffney.

Another suggestion by the Nassau County Department of Health is to avoid using electronic bug zappers. "They do not usually kill mosquitoes - they kill the bugs that eat mosquitoes," said Gaffney.

Communication within local school districts was also a problem in the past. Many community members would call the school to find out information about local spraying and the school would have no idea what was going on. "The communication was clearly lacking," said Robert Root, superintendent of North Shore School District. "I recognize that there were more unknowns than knowns, but we did not receive any information." This outlet of communication is one that will be improved on in the future, according to Gaffney.

In mid-April, Nassau County's Pest Management team will expand its surveillance for both fresh and salt water mosquitoes, including identifying potential breeding sites by dipping for larvae. If larvae are detected, these areas will be treated with an effective biological agent which will destroy the larvae, or an insect growth regulator with prevents mosquito larvae from maturing and laying eggs, according to Gulotta.

When mosquitoes begin to fly during the May through October mosquito season, Nassau County's Pest Management team will monitor 40 trapping sites throughout the county and will trap at 10 sites per night, four days a week to identify potential problem areas. In addition, laboratory analysis of mosquito, bird and blood specimens for viruses, including the West Nile virus, will be facilitated in conjunction with NY State Laboratories. A dead bird reporting, mapping and investigation system which can indicate the scope of the disease will be implemented. Active human case surveillance by frequent contact with key medical and hospital staff will take place, according to Gulotta.

Anyone interested in submitting comments on this issue can send them to Senator Marcellino at 250 Townsend Square; Oyster Bay, NY 11771. The record will be open for three weeks and Marcellino will accept any written testimony that anyone wants to submit on the record. If residents have any other questions about mosquitoes, any mosquito complaints or have observed breeding areas, they are advised to call the Nassau County Department of Health at 571-8707 weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m.