What’s going on with the mosquitoes at the prison?
A November Tribune article exposed an issue that UPHE warned against a while ago – mosquitoes terrorizing the new state prison. The Salt Lake City Mosquito Abatement District (SLCMAD) sprays pesticides in an attempt to control mosquito populations.
Another article in the Tribune last week addresses the background and depth of the issue. “Direct exposure to pesticides can have negative impacts on both people and animals, despite assurances from the Environmental Protection Agency that state otherwise. Spraying pesticides from planes also increases the chances that they will drift beyond target areas and expose others,” UPHE is quoted in the article.
“The idea that we could have ever created a substance that can selectively attack pests that we don’t like, but it will leave everybody else unaffected — that was never scientifically legitimate.”
Conditions outside are completely unfair and unjust for inmates, visitors and prison staff. And the issue is not going away. In fact, pesticide spraying has created a chemical arms race, is not effective in reducing mosquito populations long term, is losing its effectiveness even in the short term, and can even be counterproductive.
This is one of many examples why smart, sustainable development needs to take priority. Developing this area was a mistake, and is going to result in an increase in pesticides, negative environmental effects and negative health effects. Exposing residents to mosquitos is bad enough, exposing us all to the harmful chemicals in the “cure” is worse.
Here are a few more reasons we oppose pesticide spraying, despite the irritating mosquitoes:
1. Pesticides in general, including those used by SLCMAD, are a widespread risk to human health even at low doses, especially for fetuses and infants.
2. Decisions on the risks vs. benefits of exposing the public to dangerous chemicals should not be made by people with no expertise in public health, toxicology, or environmental toxins.
3. The Volatile Organic Compounds from pesticide spraying is a significant contributor to local air pollution.
4. We must not allow a cure worse than the disease. The incidence of severe outcomes from West Nile Virus is so low that preventing those outcomes should not be allowed to eclipse the long list of other health and environmental concerns from pesticide use.
5. Spraying does not reduce the incidence of West Nile Virus.
6. Claims of safety for pesticide spraying use faulty logic and outdated, faulty science. It makes no sense to expose hundreds of thousands of people to neurotoxic chemicals in an attempt to prevent a neurotoxic disease in a few dozen people.
7. Pesticide spraying has adverse impacts on beneficial insects, bird populations, wildlife, the ecosystem of the Great Salt Lake and beyond.