I hope the early summer is finding you all well as the last few months have been busy ones for the districts and members of the LMCA. As always, the LMCA and its members have been working very hard to continue being among the nation’s mosquito control elite. We started this spring with a one-day workshop in Baton Rouge at EBRPMARC on March 13. It was well attended with full enrollment and was well received by those members needing recertification. We followed up the workshop with a Louisiana Arboviral Working Group meeting held the very next day at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine. It

was open to everyone who has a vested interest in arboviral surveillance and testing within the state. As with most organizations and institutions that rely on government funding and appropriations, the Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory is continually seeing its budget cut. This in turn has a direct impact on the efforts of mosquito control and means that we must adjust as needed to continue to receiving the same level of service that we have in the past. The purpose of this meeting is to set guidelines for sampling, submissions, and costs under the guidance of the committee. We are very for-tunate in Louisiana to have such a professional group of individuals who lead us in this endeavor and are so unwavering in their commitment to see that we do not lose services due to budget cuts and to stay abreast of the current arboviral disease trends present in this state and any future ones that might come our way. So, thank you to the Arboviral Working Group Committee and the Louisiana Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory. In addition to the aforementioned items, this meeting was also used to introduce us to the new LASTS program (Louisiana Arbovirus Surveillance Testing System) which has been developed and is currently being implemented to replace our old ArboNet System. Mr. Chris Fayette of Tangipahoa Mosquito Control District has been working diligently to get this system established for us. Thank you to Mr. Fayette for all of your hard work. In April, the New Orleans Mosquito and Termite Control Board in cooperation with the LMCA held its first Mosquito Academy at the NOMTCB in New Orleans. This event proved to be very successful and well attended by members of the LMCA as well as others from around the southeast. Dr. Claudia Riegel and her staff worked tirelessly to provide a very comprehensive and balanced educational experi-ence for the attendees. Job Well Done! Lastly, a brave troupe of individuals embarked upon Washington D. C. during the first full week of May to meet with your congressmen and senators as well as several federal agencies to ensure that mosquito control’s voice is not lost in all of the noise that makes Washington D. C. Those brave individuals mak-ing the trip were Mr. Herff Jones, Mr. Dennis Wallette, Mr. Jeff North, and myself. We were very suc-cessful in having our points heard but as always this is an endeavor that cannot relent. We MUST re-main sound in our commitment to stay in Washington’s ear. For further information on the trip, please see inside for a comprehensive review by Mr. Jones. As always, I hope the rest of the mosquito season treats you well and that we all continue to see very little to no disease. Yours truly, Shannon S. Rider

Message from the President

July 2013

LeMaringouin

Inside this issue:

Annual Meeting 2

Science Fair 2

Washington Day 3

Mosquito Academy 4

District News

5

Annual Meeting Registration

8

Call for Papers

10

Bylaw Proposed Amendments

11

Shannon Rider

Paragon Casino Resort

711 Paragon Place Marksville, LA 71351

800-642-777

December 3—December 5, 2013

The LMCA Annual Meeting will be held in Marksville, Louisiana at the Paragon Casino Resort. The conference is an opportunity for members to interact with colleagues, obtain the latest information concerning all aspects of mosquito control and an opportunity to earn credits required to maintain the State of Louisiana Pesticide Applicator’s License. Room rates are $79.00 per night. When making reservations, please refer to the Louisiana Mosquito Control Associa-tion 2013 Conference LMCD02G. The deadline for room reservations is November 11th, 2013. The LMCA Website (www.lmca.us) has forms that can be printed: Room rates, Registration, Exhibitor etc.

2013 LMCA Annual Meeting

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2013 Science Fair Winner

Project Title: “Household Mosquito Larvacide”

7th Grade

School: Montegut Middle School

Summary of Project: Dennis tested four different household products (dishwashing liquid, bleach, vinegar and vegetable oil) as larvaciding agents using Southern House Mosquito larvae in small 150ml containers. He used three different concentrations of each of the products. His results showed that the dishwashing liquid was the best at killing mosquito larvae within the 2 hour observation period at even the lowest application. Household bleach was the second best, but there are envi-ronmental concerns about using beach. The vegetable oil was the third best, but only worked at higher concentrations as did the vinegar.

Marksville, LA

Dennis Bergeron

The AMCA Washington Day Conference provides an op-portunity for mosquito control professionals to hear first

hand from Federal agencies (EPA, USFWS & CDC) on matters related to mosquito control. During the confer-

ence a visit with the Louisiana congressional and senatorial delegation allows discussion of national and local issues

related to the public health initiatives of mosquito control.

This year’s conference was held May 6 – 8, and headquar-tered at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Alexandria, Virginia.

One program provided attendees with legislative and regu-

latory updates from AMCA counsel, Ed Ruckert. The

WNV outbreak in Dallas area, an overview of Dallas county health and human services, and mosquito control

was an interesting presentation by Scott Sawlis. There is an interesting web – based vehicle which delivers

constituents’ positions on legislative matters to their re-

spective Congressmen or Senator, called POPVOX. This program can provide an opportunity for spirited discussions regarding “our” message the delegates take to the Hill.

The Louisiana delegation, Shannon Rider, Dennis Wallette, Herff Jones and Jeff North focused their message on a reso-

lution for NPDES, permitting and returning federal funding support to the CDC’s vector–borne disease program. This

year’s Washington Day Conference proved timely as the group from Louisiana made 9 appointments and met directly with the Senator or Congressman on 5 office visits. The group was offered gracious hospitality by all the staff from

each office. The majority of the Louisiana Congressional delegation pledged their support for a fix to NPDES permit-ting by co–sponsoring HR 935 --- which would re–establish the original Congressional intent to regulate aquatic pesti-

cide applications under FIFRA not CWA. Senators Landrieu and Vitter took direct action to address the permitting

issue by co–sponsoring companion legislation amendment (#1100) with similar language and intent. Though we did not visit with Senator Vitter in person, key personnel from the committee on Environment and Public Works met with

the Louisiana delegation. Both Congressional and Senatorial members identified the importance of maintaining the national surveillance infrastructure supported by ELC grants through the CDC’s vector– borne disease division, but

they were cautious not to promise increased federal funding for the near future.

The final day of the conference, attendees heard from EPA, Office of Pesticide Programs, US Fisheries and Wildlife

Services, National IPM Coordinator, the Director of Government Affairs for CropLife America and Dr. Lyle Petersen, Director, CDC Division of Vector–Borne Diseases. Dr. Petersen took the opportunity to announce a revision to the

CDC’s Arbovirus Surveillance & Response guidelines. On Wednesday the end of the conference, also brought recov-

ery to the Louisiana Krewe …… from security checks, tunnels, escalators, the Rayburn building’s hallways and ex-tremely hot cab rides.

AMCA 15th Annual Washington Day Conference

Page 3 LeMaringouin

Herff Jones

In the last newsletter I spoke of how the NPDES permitting requirements could pose a severe hardship to mosquito abatement districts. Applications of mosquito control products into, above, or around waters of the United States have been exempt from having to obtain NPDES permits in advance of such applications. Mosquito control districts everywhere became alarmed in January of 2009 when a panel of judges from the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals issued a decision which struck down the EPA Final Rule which exempted mosquito control districts from permitting requirements. NPDES permitting requirements were a key topic at the AMCA Spring Legislative Conference in Washington, D. C. in May. Mem-bers from mosquito control districts around the country came together to express their concerns. Since that time there have been some positive developments. On June 8, 2009, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals granted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) request for a two-year stay of the court's January 7, 2009 decision which made certain applications of pesticides subject to National Pollutant Dis-charge Elimination System (NPDES) permitting requirements. This stay gives EPA, and the states which are delegated the authority to enforce the NPDES program, until April 9, 2011 to develop, propose and issue NPDES general permits for pesticide applications covered by the Sixth Circuit's decision. These permits will be required for pesticides applied directly to water to control pests and/or applied to control pests that are present in or over, including near waters. Irrigation return flows and agricultural runoff will not require NPDES permits as they are specifically exempted from the CWA. The Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality has

Mosquito Academy

The City of New Orleans Mosquito, Termite and Rodent Control Board in cooperation with the Louisiana Mosquito Control Association held the first Mosquito Academy April 22-24 at the NOMTCB building in New Orleans. The three-day Academy offered comprehensive and in-depth information in all areas of mosquito biology and control. The Academy placed emphasis on field training and mosquito identification. Thirty-four people from all over Louisiana and one university of Georgia student and another person from Mississippi attended the class. There were several people with many years of experience and there were others that were new to the industry. This was a collaborative effort. I would like to thank Cheri Vining and Dennis Wallette (Tangipahoa Parish MAD) for assisting with the registration and accounting. Cindy Krohn (NOMTCB) and Carrie Cottone (NOMTCB) also were invaluable with registration and preparing the materials for the course. We had a variety of speakers with many years of experience in addition to having a lot of personality which was critical in keeping the audience engaged.

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Caddo After having a very busy season in 2012, this year started very slow, with a very cold spring. The record low temperatures were set in March, April, and the first week of May. This kept the mosquito counts down and the complaints low. That all changed by mid-May with hot temperatures and some serious storms that pro-duced a lot of rain and caused some damage in the par-ish. On June 6, a record rainfall brought almost 4 inches for that day. The rain has caused all types of flood pool mosquitoes to be active resulting in in-creased mosquito counts. Aedes albopictus have become a serious problem leading to numerous public com-plaints. Gravid trap counts have been high. The first couple of weeks of spray operations were hit or miss. Problems with rain and the winds were extensive. By mid-June the conditions had improved so that areas with high mosquito counts could be treated. In regard to the virus front, all the pools we have sub-mitted have been negative. Our hope is to continue to submit negative pools. I hope everyone has a good summer and we avoid West Nile.

Calcasieu Mosquito populations hit an all-time low this spring and cur-rently they are still below average. Total service request for the year are at 70. Last year at this time we had received 535. It’s been a welcome break which has allowed us to focus on other projects.

Jill Hightower re-cently completed a Mosquito Poster Con-test for National Mosquito Awareness Week. The contest was announced at public libraries with a division for 3rd, 4th and 5th graders. Winners received

multiple prizes consisting of trophies, passes for the Chil-dren’s Museum, Putt-Putt games, Chick-fil-A, and gift cards.

Awards for the poster contest were scheduled and filmed par-ish library. Our C-Gov department recorded the awards event and interviewed several of the winners. The program was then given air time on our local C-Gov cable channel. It seems that West Nile virus activity is off to a slower start this year throughout the state. Caldwell Parish just had the first confirmed human case Monday, July 22nd. We’ve had no mos-quito pools test positive for West Nile virus this year. Looking back the past 12 years, only in 2009 and 2010 did we not re-port a human case of WNV. August and September have been the time period for 70 percent of all our human cases. Hope-fully we’ll get a break this year, but we’ll have to wait and see. Our aerial program has undergone some changes this season. We have two pilots under contract with VDCI. We’d like to welcome aboard Paul Heideman and Guy Faget. Who would have thought Guy would be flying our Islander. They both have been training with our Hemisphere G4 guidance system. It’s been great to work with these guys and their ex-perience is an asset to our aerial program.

Cameron Compared to most years, this year has been very slow. There were no freezes and plenty of rain during the winter. The repeated cold fronts until early May helped keep the mosquito population low. The wet win-ter freshened our marshes. Fishermen can finally catch bream and bass again in many of our marshes. The salt marsh mosquito population was reduced by the change in many breeding grounds by the storms Rita and Ike. Salt marsh mosquito outbreaks in the parish have only been showing up near the coast, near the Calcasieu ship chan-nel, and near the marshes connecting to Big Lake and Sabine Lake. In freshened marsh areas mosquito species diversity has increased. However, the total populations have stayed relatively low this year. To date six flights for spraying have been made. Since May, we have been running trucks routinely to try to spray most areas of the parish once a week. Areas with higher mosquito popula-tions are sprayed more. So far there has been no evi-dence of mosquito borne disease in our parish this year. As I am writing this, it is raining outside. Perhaps this may be a sign that our high pressure weather pattern may be coming to an end. If the weather pattern changes to a more rainy pattern, mosquito abatement can change very rapidly. We could be back to more frequent spray-ing, and more areas to spray.

District News

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Ouachita What a difference a year makes! As of June 15, 2012, Ouachita Parish had already collected 47 West Nile positive mosquito pools our of a total of 440 pools sub-mitted and was gearing up to begin aerial applications. As of June 13, 2013, we have collected one West Nile positive mosquito pool out of a total of 328 pools sub-mitted. As one can see, not only are we experiencing a different year thus far, in relation to disease, but also a relation to trap counts. Though we did not encounter a harsh winter this year, we did have an extremely late hard freeze. Our spring was cooler and summer came with early above normal temperatures. The arrival of spring has also brought reoccurring thunderstorms, that are delivering substan-tial rainfall and higher winds. These rains have definitely helped to provide a continual flushing of the breeding sites of both permanent water and floodwater mosqui-toes. However, within the last week the rainfall that we have experienced has been slower falling without the flushing action and with the higher temperatures. We may begin to see increased counts, if these types of rains continue. Operationally, we have lost (through resignation) one of the members of our day crew who worked in our larviciding operation. We conducted interviews throughout the third week of June to replace him, and I am happy to announce that we have promoted Prentice Woods to Pest Control Inspector. Prentice has been with us for two years as a seasonal night driver. Prentice will be moving into a full-time position at OPMAD.

St. Tammany The cool weather in April through the middle of May was really nice while it lasted. As soon as temperatures in-creased later in May, it was like turning a light switch on that brought on increased mosquito activity. Up until then, we only conducted aerial adulticide once and ground ULV spraying was below normal. The biggest problem we are now experiencing is quinks. In mid-May we were averaging only 30 quinks per gravid trap. During the first week of June, the average per trap jumped to 374. The hot and dry weather contributed to the enor-mous increase. The ditches also became more heavily vegetated and this made it difficult for the larvicide oil to get to the water. Last week we began treating the road-side ditches with Bti granules dispersed from three trucks equipped with Aero Guns. The use of the granules has greatly increased our control. Hopefully, soon we will have the counts knocked down to more manageable lev-els. We have recently conducted aerial adulticide measures throughout the areas of heavy quink infestations. Culex salinarius and Anopleles crucians have shown some in-creases, but that is normal for this time of year. Some of the marsh breeding sites have been larvicided with the airboats, as they were not large enough areas to use the Ag Husky. Dr. Kevin Caillout has been hired by the District and will begin employment the first of July. Dr. Caillout is a former student of Dr. Dawn Wesson. Some of the work that he will be involved with will be conducting studies on various West Nile virus interactions in order to help develop better strategies for control.

District News

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New Iberia 2012 was a time of pressure for District mosquito abatement. Routine ground spraying began in February, leaving little time for spray system overhauls and main-tenance. In the first quarter of 2012, the District had conducted five aerial operations. Last year Iberia parish mosquito control district treated 975,000 acres with ULV applications from the ground and air. This was combined with 17,000 surface acres of larviciding appli-cations. This year is quite different with low mosquito numbers and no indications of virus activity in mosquito pool submissions. Our ground spraying has been lim-ited to treatment of areas with larval activity, adult mosquito collections, citizens’ requests or outdoor public events. Unlike last year, adult density thresholds have not triggered aerial applications. The district conducted several rewarding educational projects this year with local high schools. One school project was an on – site visit with presentations on mosquito biology, human diseases, and operations. Demonstrations were a part of these educational pres-entations. An area high school made a field trip visit to our offices. The students seemed to enjoy seeing the lab, equipment and aircraft. Our campaign for National Mosquito Control Awareness Week will begin on the Monday with a media blitz delivering a “Pilez Mosquito Week” proclamation from our parish president, a press release from the District, and a local talk radio spot. This is all in conjunction with week long educational programs at the local libraries targeting primary and secondary school age children.

New Orleans Mosquito populations have been generally low due to the cool winter temperatures and wet conditions in New Orleans this spring. High winds and frequent heavy rain showers forced us to postpone our first ground ULV treatments until May. We are planning a city-wide aerial preventative treatment focused at Cx. quinquefasciatus control in June. We have continued to expand our mosquito surveillance activities by adding additional gravid trap locations and expanding to year-round arboviral surveillance. In addi-tion, we will continue to use New Jersey light traps in rural and wooded areas and dry-ice baited miniature CDC light traps in urban and suburban areas. We are also monitoring Aedes populations using ovitraps and BG Sentinel traps. In February, NOMTCB staff made a presentation at the AMCA Annual Meeting in Atlantic City, N.J. Sarah Michaels spoke on the “Multi-faceted response to the re-surgence of West Nile virus in New Orleans, Louisiana, 2012”. Sarah Michaels represented participating LMCA districts in the Rutgers University Asian Tiger Mosquito Area-Wide Project with a talk entitled: “Aedes albopictus Control in Southern Louisiana”. Whitney Howe, a for-mer summer worker and Tulane University graduate student, gave a presentation on the “Impact of nocturnal adulticide applications on Aedes albopictus and Ae. aegypti populations in New Orleans, Louisiana”. In conjunction with LMCA, NOMTCB hosted a “ Mos-quito Academy” from April 22-24. This 3-day training offered comprehensive hands-on training for experienced professionals and newcomers. Topics addressed were in mosquito biology, control, field training and mosquito identification. It included presentations from mosquito control experts including Mr. Mark Latham from Manatee County Mosquito Control District and Dr. Janet McAllister from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Over 35 attendees came from Mosquito Abatement Districts and universities around the state and region. The Academy was a success and we plan to offer it on an annual basis. Pictures from the class are on the LMCA website.

District News

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Code of Ethics - for members of the Louisiana Mosquito Control Association

Mosquito control provides services which are increasingly important to the health, welfare and progress of society. Those employed in the mosquito control profession have the responsibility to render effective and professional service to humanity, in keeping with the high standards of ethical conduct. Therefore, in striving to advance and maintain the honor and dignity of the profession, the Louisiana Mosquito Control Association has established the following code to define the con-duct and ethics due the profession. This code is binding on the membership of the LMCA. LMCA members will use their knowledge and skill for the betterment of human welfare. Members will, at all times, strive to maintain the public trust, and advance the standards and princi-ples established by the LMCA. Members will cooperate in the exchange of information and technology for the growth and progress of the mosquito control profession and the LMCA. Members will not cause dishonor to the Association through their actions while representing the LMCA. Members will promote solidarity, harmony and support among members and fellow workers. They will not undermine, vilify, berate or otherwise intentionally injure the work, accomplishments, efforts or professional reputation of another. Members will not conduct or in any way participate in a fallacious review of the work of a fellow worker or other member. Members will help defend and morally support others against unjust claims and accusations. They will defend the mosquito control profession and report to the Board of Directors any member acting in a manner inconsistent with the policies and guidelines set forth by the LMCA. Charges of any violation of this code on the part of any member will be reviewed by the LMCA Board of Directors and may, with a majority vote of the Board, result in, but not be limited to, censorship, loss of voting privileges within the Association, removal from committee membership and removal from membership in the Association.

Call For Papers - 2013 Annual Meeting in Lafayette, LA

DEADLINE FOR PAPER SUBMISSION - November 4th

Name of Author (s): Presenter ( if different from above ) Presenter’s e-mail: Affiliation and address: Title of Paper: Presenters are allotted 15 minutes (including questions). If you wish to have additional time for your presentation, please contact the program chair. Presentation information for the meeting program may be submitted to: Shannon S. Rider, Program Chair Ouachita Parish Mosquito Abatement District 4709 Construction Ave. Monroe, LA 71203 Phone 318-323-3535 Fax 318-323-8163 srider@oppj.org

LMCA Bylaws Proposed Amendments

The LMCA Board of Directors after considering the Bylaws committee’s recommendations offers the following proposed amendments to the currently adopted association Bylaws. In accordance with Article V of the LMCA Bylaws, proposed amendments must be considered by the entire voting membership, duly notified and approved by two-thirds (2/3) majority vote. These proposed amendments will be presented to the membership for adoption during the business meeting at the Marksville 2013 Annual Meeting.

To address: The capacity for electronic responses to a poll vote Article II Sec. B – 2 “Polls by email” “… any issue may be referred to the members by the President or the Board of Directors in a poll by email, provided adequate explanation of the proposed action is presented and a date set for responses. Approval of any action in a poll by email shall be by a majority of the votes cast…” To address: Voting procedures in the event of a tie ballot Article III Sec. B – 5 “Tie Ballot” “… in the event of a tie ballot between two nominees receiving the lowest vote totals, there will be a re-vote between the two nominees receiving equal number of votes. The revote will be by secret ballot and write – in votes are not appropriate during this revote. The successful nominee from the revote will occupy the last vacancy on the Board.” To address: “Void Ballots” Article III Sec. B – 6 “void Ballots” “… a ballot shall be considered void if there is no clear indication of a chosen nominee, if there is no clear indication of a chosen write – in nominee (candidate nominated from the floor) or if there is an excess of votes cast. For example, if 4 Board vacancies are to be placed and 5 votes are cast among the ballot nominees…” To address: Expediting By – Laws amendment adoption Article V “Amendments” “… These By – Laws may be amended by a 2/3’s majority vote of the members voting at the Annual or Special meeting or by a mail or email poll vote, provided that the membership has been notified of the proposed amendment or amendments at least 30 days prior to the date set for the meeting or response to mail or email poll vote…”

Louisiana Mosquito

Control Association

15483 Club Deluxe Rd. Hammond, LA 70403

Phone: 985-543-0454 Fax: 985-543-0457

info@louisianamosquito.org

Seattle Washington

February 2-6, 2014 The AMCA Annual Meeting is the premier education and networking event for researchers, educators, vector control professionals, industry representa-tives, and students in mosquito control. Every year since 1935, hundreds gather to hear the latest research, share ideas, and form collaborations. Our educational sessions and exhibit hall help to put attendees on the cutting-edge of this ever-expanding field!

2014 AMCA Meeting

Page 12

www.lmca.us

LeMaringouin

Membership

Today the LMCA is a support arm for these operations, those smaller city/community op-erators and all others interested in mosquito control. We provide a platform for educa-tional resources and opportunities through publications, meetings and workshops, as well as guidance and technical direction for those in need. Association leadership works closely with state regulators to assure competency within operations and vigilance on legislative matters. Through this we are able to uphold our mission of enhancing the quality of life through the suppression of mosquitoes for all here in Louisiana.

E-Newsletters IPM Training

Workshops Educational Resources

Annual Meetings Legislative/Regulatory Monitoring

Lower rates for meeting registration Technical Manuals / Bulletins

Technical Advisory Services