• Safeguard Your Home
• Make sure that doors and windows have tight-fitting screens. Repair or replace all screens that have tears or holes
• Dispose of tin cans, plastic containers, ceramic pots, or similar water-holding containers
• Make sure roof gutters drain properly. Clean clogged gutters in the spring and fall
• Clean and chlorinate swimming pools, outdoor saunas and hot tubs. If not in use, keep empty and covered
• Drain water from pool covers
• Change the water in birdbaths every 3 to 4 days
• Turn over plastic wading pools and wheelbarrows when not in use
• Remove all discarded tires from your property
• Eliminate any standing water that collects on your property
• Remind or help neighbours to eliminate breeding sites on their properties

Pesticide Use

• The Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit will not be conducting a larviciding program within our boundaries in 2008. A risk assessment for West Nile virus has been completed for the 2007 season. The assessment has determined that the risk of contracting WNv in our area is low based on the following indicators

The percentage of Culex species of mosquito is an important piece of information when trying to determine the risk of WNv in a geographic area. Brock University has found a direct relationship between a high percentage of Adult Culex species of mosquitoes and the occurrence of human cases of WNv. Over the past two years the percentage of Culex species of mosquitoes was very low in both 2006 and 2007. It is also worth nothing that no larviciding has been done since 2003 and thus the low percentage for Culex species appears to be unrelated to previous larvciding.
It should be noted that a risk assessment is an ongoing process and we will be using our surveillance data from year to year to determine the need of larvcide controls in the future.

• The use of adulticides will only be considered by the Medical Officer of Health in the event of major burden of illness and significant infected mosquito population and all other control measures have proven ineffective

Larvae