The City of Ottawa says summertime mosquito control measures in Kanata North will begin Friday and run through the middle of September.
The City says the Kanata North Nuisance Mosquito Control Program “deals with treating mosquito larvae in wetlands so they won’t hatch.” It does not involve killing live mosquitoes.
City-hired contractors will do daily ground applications of larvicide throughout the spring and summer. Granular larvicide will also be applied by helicopter sometime in the next two weeks.
In a press release, the City says, “the program will use Bti, (Bacillus Thuringiensis Israelensis) and Bs (Bacillus Sphaericus), which are naturally-occurring bacteria, that is dropped directly into the water where the larvae are found. Feeding larvae draw it in with the water, which stops them from becoming adult mosquitoes.”
“The Health Canada Regulatory Agency states that Bti and Bs have no effect on humans, birds, fish, animals or other insects,” the release further reads.
The Kanata North ward has many wetlands, which contributes to a larger mosquito population compared to other wards in Ottawa.
Residents in the ward voted in 2016 to pay an additional levy on their property taxes over four years to cover the cost of the $1.5 million program.