Mosquito control and surveillance
Mosquito surveillance and control staff have an important preventive role during non-outbreak periods to monitor dengue mosquito numbers, conduct routine elimination of mosquito breeding sites and conduct training sessions for stakeholders.
Can mosquito control officers enter my home?
Yes, they can enter your garden without consent, but they need your consent to come inside your 'dwelling' (your house or unit). Under the Public Health Act 2005, these 'Prevention and Control Programs' enable authorised officers to enter private premises at any reasonable time of the day or night to search for mosquitoes and breeding spots. They are also authorised to deploy mosquito traps in yards. (Officers are not authorised to enter a dwelling without consent. They may enter dwellings if requested by, or permitted, by the resident.)
There are Authorised Prevention and Control Programs which permit mosquito control officers to enter premises and treat mosquito breeding sites. This work prevents dengue outbreaks. Queensland Health applies for these permits and they currently exist for:
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Cairns Regional Council area effective until 1 June 2009
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Torres Shire Council area effective until 30 June 2009
The authorised officers have powers to eradicate mosquitoes, including by the use of pesticides and/or gather evidence. Refer to the Public Health Act 2005 in the legislation section for more details about authorised prevention and control programs.
In the Torres Strait Islands the Aedes Albopictus (Asian Tiger Mosquito) Eradication Program is authorised to apply insecticide at Torres Strait Island communities under Section 290(3)(a) of the Health (Drugs and Poisons) Regulation 1996.
Insecticide must be applied by pest management technicians (licensed under the Pest Management Act 2001) attached to the Aedes Albopictus (Asian Tiger Mosquito) Eradication Program.
Where does mosquito control happen?
Queensland Health, local government and Indigenous community council workers attempt to eliminate dengue mosquito breeding sites by identifying areas likely to have containers according to (1) type of venue and (2) geographical ‘hot spots’, as follows:
High-risk venues
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Backpackers/hostels/guest houses
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Local hospitals
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Local schools (pre-schools, primary, high schools, TAFEs, day care centres)
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Transit centres
Geographical hot spots
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Older areas of town with non-screened housing (especially with a history of high dengue mosquito production)
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Areas that have had previous dengue activity
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Industrial areas (especially tyre yards and wreckers)
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Torres Strait Island communities with high numbers of potential mosquito breeding sites
Mosquito surveillance and control becomes critical when an imported case or locally-acquired case of dengue is reported. To enable emergency responses to notified dengue cases, Authorised Prevention and Control Programs are declared for high-risk local government areas each dengue season.
Traditional dengue mosquito surveillance involves inspecting yards - 'house to house inspections' for mosquito breeding. However, recently, 'lure and kill' mosquito traps have been developed to trap adult dengue mosquitoes (Ritchie et al. 2003, 2004). With the mosquito traps, a lure (either a pheromone or kairomone) that is highly attractive to a specific insect, is mixed with a pesticide or presented in such a way that the attracted insects are killed (eg. glue trap). Annihilation trapping, whereby the target area is flooded with a high density of lure and kill traps, has proven successful in the elimination of other insects, such as the papaya fruit fly in north Queensland in the late 1990s. Large numbers of mosquito traps can be used in a surveillance network to locate hotspots of dengue mosquitoes and thus target yard inspections.
Mosquito control workers become the 'firefighters' of dengue if an imported or locally-acquired case of dengue threatens to begin an outbreak. Dengue can spread through a suburb like a bushfire, and mosquito populations are the fuel for the fire. The more mosquitoes present, the faster dengue can spread.
Mosquito control workers conduct yard-to-yard inspections and eliminate dengue mosquitoes. This is a collaborative effort between Tropical Population Health Network [including the Dengue Action Response Team (DART)], local government and Indigenous community councils. The methods used in mosquito elimination involve removal or treatment of containers that can hold larvae and pupae, placement of ‘lure and kill’ mosquito traps, and, where permitted, discreet interior spraying to kill adult dengue mosquitoes.
Mosquito surveillance and control activities can, if implemented promptly, limit the extent of dengue outbreaks.
Pesticide advice
Mosquito pesticides Dengue Action Response Team (DART) officers are licensed Pest Management Technicians. They are licensed to use chemicals for mosquito control and trained to ensure that chemicals are applied safely.
The mosquito control chemicals are selected for their low-toxicity to humans and domestic pets (except fish and crustaceans). All surface sprays applied inside premises are water-based and non-staining and have a very low (if any) level of odour.
There are several types of internal sprays, external sprays and external surface sprays that may be used by DART officers.
Internal sprays
Demand interior spray
(Active ingredient: lambda-cyhalothrin 25g/L) (Concentration: 0.8125g/L)
Demand is a chemical that is used in an indoor surface spray and in a spray for potential and actual mosquito breeding containers.
Cislin interior spray
(Concentration: 0.075g/L)
Cislin is a chemical which is used in an indoor surface spray and in a spray for potential and actual mosquito breeding containers.
Precautions
As synthetic pyrethrins are toxic to fish and crustaceans, fish tanks should be covered and water aerators turned off whenever a DART officer requests to spray inside your home.
People, animals and birds should be outdoors while the premises are being sprayed. If skin contact with wet chemical occurs, wash affected areas thoroughly with soap and water. It is safe to return indoors once the chemical is dry (10 minutes).
The amount of chemical on mosquito traps is too low to present a health risk. The fabric strip on mosquito traps may present a choking hazard to small children.
Outdoor Sprays
Prolink container treatment
(Active ingredient: s-methoprene 4%).
Prolink is a chemical in pellet form which is placed in potential and actual mosquito breeding containers including roof gutters. Prolink briquets are registered for use in rainwater tanks.
Biflex Aqua mosquito traps and interior spray
(Active ingredient: bifenthrin 80g/L) (Concentration: 0.075g/L)
TalstarOne is a chemical which is placed on fabric strips in mosquito traps and used in an indoor surface spray and in a spray for potential and actual mosquito breeding containers.
Outdoor Surface Sprays and Container Treatment
Mortein Surface Spray or Baygon Surface Spray
These are used to spray potential and actual mosquito breeding containers.
Biflex Aqua
(Active ingredient: bifenthrin 80g/L) (Concentration: 0.075g/L)
TalstarOne is a chemical which is used in an indoor surface spray and in a spray for potential and actual mosquito breeding containers.
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