The state will soon begin spraying trees in parts of Howard County with insecticide in order to reduce the number of gypsy moths in the area, state officials announced Thursday.

The Maryland Department of Agriculture monitors the population of gypsy moths around the state and orders insecticide spraying in areas where officials think the population is not being kept in check by other means. Gypsy moth caterpillars eat leaves of hardwood trees in May and June and large outbreaks in past years have defoliated hundreds of thousands of acres of trees, according to the department’s Web site.

Aerial spraying is beginning Friday in Anne Arundel, Charles, Talbot and Worcester counties. No date is set for Howard County, but it is expected to begin soon.

Overall, the state will spray trees on 32,732 acres in 14 counties. Individual property owners were sent notice about the spraying, according to the department’s Web site.

The department will spray in Howard County, using bacillus thuringiensis, a naturally occurring soil bacterium that has been authorized for use as a pesticide since 1961. It can cause irritation to the skin, eyes and respiratory tract if encountered by humans, but any serious adverse health effects are not likely, according to a study prepared in 2004 for the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

Maps showing the 20 spray locations in the county can be found here.

The areas are not necessarily sprayed in numerical order. Spraying may be delayed if there is rain, high winds, fog or high or low humidity in the area at the time of the scheduled spraying.

For more information, call 410-841-5922.

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user comments (1)

user robertw says...

The government agencies have conceded that the gypsy moth cannot be eradicated, that the spread cannot be stopped, only spreading slowed down. Think of it, two choices: CHOICE ONE: the moth can complete its spread and we can deal with the consequences afterwards and have no additional chemicals put into our environment that we will breathe, etc. CHOICE TWO: we can have the gypsy moth complete its spread a bit slower and also have millions of pounds of chemical put into our environment for us to breathe. By using the chemicals, it makes the ultimate recovery of the natural trees and vegetation less likely because of the extra strain on the vegetation from chemicals (due to artificially interfering with the natural balances of nature that are so important for nature adjusting and fighting back.) It also costs billions of dollars to use so much chemical over this country. So why are we continuing with an aerial spray method and policy that (A) costs so much money, (B) ultimately adds to the damage of natural vegetation and (C) interferes with the health of those in the area for sure (People's Inquiry, New Zealand) and maybe the rest of us to a lesser degree we can't know. FOLLOW THE MONEY. The large chemical companies together sell enough chemical to apply four billion pounds on this earth each year. Monsanto is responsible for much of it and some of the worst ones. And those who worked at Monsanto in the past and promoted Monsanto's "Chemical Capabilities" are now filling the positions and heading the agricultural agencies throughout this nation who are supposed to be making wise choices and protecting our population. FOLLOW THE MONEY. search: "CDFA May Have Underestimated Toxic Danger" and see how well our agricultural agencies have been doing. and then search: "Fraud and Deception: The CDFA LBAM Eradication, indybay"

Posted 1:12 PM, 05.01.09 | Permalink