By Rod Hansen
Staff Writer

Beware of poisonous pests.

That’s the word health officials are putting out this week as they urge residents to protect themselves against mosquitoes, the insects capable of spreading the Eastern equine encephalitis virus to birds and mammals.

Several mosquitoes have tested positive for EEE this year, including one species that preys on mammals as well as birds.

To combat the threat, a new state law offers up to 25 percent compensation for mosquito control costs to communities deemed at risk for mosquito-borne illness. Those communities must also have an approved plan for mosquito control to qualify for the aid.

The funds became available after one mosquito pool tested positive in for EEE in Manchester.

Communities approved for the assistance include Manchester, Merrimack, Litchfield, Bedford, Goffstown, Hooksett and Auburn. The funding comes from a law passed under House Bill 1464, which took effect July 1.

“We want to make sure that we are providing the local communities the tools they need to combat EEE effectively,” said John Stephen, commissioner of the state Department of Health and Human Services. 

“This new law gives an opportunity for the state to help communities to prevent this disease, and our goal is always to focus on prevention,” Stephen said.

A total of five mosquito pools in the state have tested positive for EEE this year. There were seven cases of the disease reported in New Hampshire last year, including two deaths.

Christopher Burke, 5, of Goffstown, was among those to be affected by the disease last year.

Goffstown has not applied for funding for mosquito-control efforts, pending results of testing for EEE in town mosquito pools, said Town Administrator Sue Desruisseaux.

The testing usually lasts a week or two, and samples would be taken from various areas, Desruisseaux said. The town will make residents aware of the results from those tests as they become available, she said.

Results of those tests will determine whether the town applies for state aid, and other measures Goffstown takes to fight moquitoes, Desruisseaux said.

The town’s last attempt at a mosquito-control initiative came in 2001, during the height of the West Nile virus scare.

A proposed warrant article for the 2001 Town Meeting called for $27,500 for spraying and other protective measures.

However, the article faced strong opposition at the deliberative session of Town Meeting, and went to the March ballot with a $0 request for funding.

“Many different factions spoke out against it,” Desruisseaux said. “There were biologists who said you kill good insects along with bad ones when you spray, and some people with difficulty breathing said the spraying would irritate them,” she said.

Though it’s still in question which actions the town will take against EEE, the town’s Web site already contains a link with information about mosquito prevention. Town health employees have also been instructed to refer callers to places where they can find more information about EEE.

Desruisseaux said she thinks Health and Human Services has done a good job of informing the public about the potential threat.

“It is a regional problem, so there should be a regional solution,” Desruisseaux said.

The city of Manchester will probably apply for state aid in mosquito control, said Phil Alexakos, the senior public health specialist with Manchester Health Department.

The city has already received a spraying permit from New Hampshire Department of Agriculture Pesticide control board, which the city has applied for every year since 2000.

The city also has a comprehensive plan for mosquito control that includes spraying, purchasing repellent for festivals, posting signage for personal protection, and a video with advice on mosquito bite prevention and further information on EEE.

“We encourage everybody to take proper precautions to avoid being bit, and I look forward to the first frost of the year,” Alexakos said.