EEE outbreak and sprayings near Manchester
The Coquillettidia perturbans mosquito, also known as the cattail mosquito, is known as the “bridge vector” of deadly Eastern Equine Encephalitis because it transfers the virus from infected animals to humans.
Two areas in Jackson County, surrounding Concord and Grass Lake, and a small portion of Webster and Northfield Townships in northern Washtenaw County, were treated Saturday night, Oct. 5, to control mosquitoes that may carry Eastern Equine Encephalitis, or EEE. Aerial spraying is being carried out in parts of the state with confirmed human or animal cases of EEE to decrease mosquitoes that can carry the potentially deadly virus.
EEE is a rare, but serious, disease that is caused by a virus spread by infected mosquitoes. The EEE virus can cause inflammation of the brain (encephalitis). In the United States, approximately 5-10 EEE cases in humans are reported annually. It is one of the most severe mosquito-borne diseases in the United States. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), approximately one-third of the human cases of EEE are fatal.
The Grass Lake area is the closest EEE positive animal case and spraying to the Manchester area. The approximate boundaries of that spraying include I-94, the north edge of Wolf Lake, Hayball Road and Maute Road.
As of Oct. 6, EEE has been confirmed in nine people, with four fatalities. Cases are in Barry, Berrien, Calhoun, Cass, Kalamazoo and Van Buren counties. In addition, cases have occurred in 34 animals from 15 counties: Allegan, Barry, Berrien, Calhoun, Cass, Genesee, Jackson, Kalamazoo, Kent, Lapeer, Livingston, Montcalm, Newaygo, St. Joseph and Van Buren. Washtenaw County has no human or animal cases of EEE. The spraying in Washtenaw County is within the 2.5 mile radius of a confirmed animal case Livingston County.
The Washtenaw County Health Department stated, “No hard frost is expected for several weeks in lower Michigan. Additionally, mosquito trappings this week indicated that the mosquitoes known to spread EEE were still active, which is unusual for this time of year. No short-term or long-term risks to human health are expected during or after spraying. Application conducted at night will minimize risk to daytime foragers such as bees. We strongly encourage preventing mosquito bites whenever possible.”
The pesticide, Merus 3.0, is an organic pesticide containing 5 percent pyrethrin, a chemical found naturally in some chrysanthemum flowers but that is toxic to insects.
Laura McGowan, spokesperson from Clarke, the Illinois-based mosquito control company responsible for the spraying stated that the product lasts only a short time in the air. It dissolves as it hits the ground, eliminating concerns for bees because they’re not active until the morning. “The droplets settle to the ground within 30 minutes of spraying and ‘immediately break down’, and Clarke pilots spray only until 3:30 am or so, meaning the product has disappeared by the time bees emerge in the morning,” she said.
But even as the state sought to reassure residents of the safety of Merus 3.0 and reported its fourth death from EEE, many residents were concerned enough about chemicals that they opted out of the spraying program. Among those concerned are bee keepers, who worry about the pesticide’s harm to honeybees.
The Great Lakes Bee Supply in Galesburg, near Kalamazoo, recommended on its Facebook page that beekeepers pull their honey from hives early and provide clean water, specialized for honeybees, inside the hives. Bees play a crucial role in the food chain, said owner Bill Graham, and beekeepers are already struggling to maintain hives against a shrinking bee population.
“I’m not trying to be ruthless,” Graham said, referring to the deaths from EEE. “But bees pollinate all our food all our vegetables, all our fruit, the crops for the cattle to eat, the pigs to eat — everything. We’re doing everything we can to get pollinators to make it, then they mass spray an area and could kill everything,” he said.
He said he did not lobby against the spraying, but that he recommended bee keepers close up the hives on the nights that the state sprays and throughout the following day.
More details about the EEE outbreak in Michigan are available at www.Michigan.gov/eee.
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