Point Reyes Light - December 2, 2004
West Nile a key factor as coast votes into mosquito-control district
By Jim Kravets
Landowners in West Marin and parts of unincorporated Sonoma County gave the nod towards an additional $19-a-year parcel tax, joining the Marin/Sonoma Mosquito and Vector Control District charged with fighting the West Nile Virus which is spreading across the state.
Property owners in parts of Marin and Sonoma counties previously outside district boundaries approved the annexation vote by a margin of 64 percent to 36 percent in a special postal election, district officials reported. The annexation went into effect on Monday.
Annexation to the district allows a number of means to control mosquitoes, including the aerial-spraying of pesticides. District officials have repeatedly said that widespread spraying is only a last-resort measure, but that they would do what was necessary to prevent any human deaths in the district.
64 percent said yes
Twenty-seven thousand ballots were mailed out Oct. 7 to land owners with property outside of the district’s service area. The poll queried landowners whether they supported annexation into the district. Landowners in the communities of Tomales, Marshall, Dillon Beach, Point Reyes Station, Olema, Inverness, Inverness Park, Drakes Beach, Bolinas, Stinson Beach, Muir Beach, Tocaloma and Nicasio participated in the polling, and were given 45 days to return ballots. (The San Geronimo Valley communities lie within current district boundaries).
In order for the measure to pass, more than 50 percent of the vote was needed. The district received 6,259 votes in support of expansion and 3,454 votes in opposition. A total of 9,713 ballots were returned. Mosquito officials at this time were unable to determine what percentage of West Marin ballots supported annexation.
District officials convened Wednesday to discuss implementation of the annexation. "We’ve got a lot of work to do now," District Manager Jim Wanderscheid told The Light. "December is planning month. We have to plan our strategy. Then we have to start putting plans in motion."
100,000 people added
The district presently serves over 600,000 residents in a 960-square-mile area. The annexation has added more than 100,000 new residents to the district, encompassing all of Marin and Sonoma counties.
Wanderscheid said the district had already hired two new staff members last August. "They’re in training now. We’ll hire two more by Jan. 1," adding that additional personnel will be hired as needed.
Wanderscheid admitted surprise at the vote tally. "I thought it was going to be closer. I thought there would be more in opposition to [the annexation]. I was also surprised by the turnout." Almost 36 percent of ballots were returned. "Usually you don’t have a lot of people sending them back."
West Nile strikes local wildlife
Ongoing reports of West Nile Virus in West Marin no doubt added a degree of urgency to the district vote.
A Swainson’s thrush found dead Oct. 4 near Aberdeen Way in Inverness was the last bird in West Marin to have been confirmed felled from West Nile Virus, county health officials reported. A fox sparrow found dead in Bolinas Sept. 20, a Western scrub jay found dead in Woodacre Sept. 10, and four birds found dead in Tomales during August, all tested positive for the virus. As of this week, a total of 18 birds have tested positive for the virus in Marin County.
According to health officials, there have been no human or equine cases of West Nile Virus reported in Marin County. Furthermore, mosquito officials said, no mosquitoes or sentinel chicken flocks have tested positive for the virus in Marin.
Wanderscheid said that cooler weather and people spending more time indoors has, for the time being, reduced the threat of the virus. But that will all probably change come April, he noted. "We’re anticipating that’s when we’ll see the first activity of West Nile in the area."
Human cases expected
In spite of the district’s increased coverage area, cases of the virus next year may not be restricted to birds. "I assume we’ll see a human case next year in this area," Wanderscheid said. "But we hope we never see it."
Wanderscheid said the district will approach the newly annexed areas with the same mandate it currently uses: find and control areas where mosquitoes breed. "Larval control and education of the public is our main focus. And as far as we can help it, there will be no adulticiding [open spraying of pesticides to kill adult mosquitoes]."
The district continues to monitor West Nile Virus through the winter and urges anyone who finds birds that have been dead for less than 24 hours to report them to health officials at 1-877 968-2473. Online reporting is preferred at <www.westnile.ca.gov/deadbird.cfm>.