Kentucky Agriculture Commissioner James Comer will meet with local judge executives next Tuesday concerning this year’s increased mosquito levels.
Judge-executives from Calloway, Marshall, Lyon and Trigg counties sent a letter to the commissioner asking for aerial pesticide spraying. The commissioner responded by requesting an in-person meeting.
Calloway County Judge-Executive Larry Elkins said that the Agriculture Department has been spraying the area by trucks but that it may not be enough to combat this year’s infestation.
“They’ve helped but it’s been a tough battle this year," said Elkins. "We had a mild winter, and it’s been very wet all spring, we’ve continued to have a lot of rain, and apparently the conditions are right for them. We’ll be meeting next week with the Ag commissioner, I think they have some plans to attack the problem from a little different angle.”
Elkins said his office has received dozens of complaints of mosquito swarms in the past month. He said most of those come from residents living near the lakes.
Elkins believes the commissioner will call for planes to spray the pesticide from the air which may significantly reduce the problem. The commissioner will address the problem at the town hall-style meeting July 2nd at Cadiz City Hall.
Marshall County Judge-Executive Mike Miller said the last time a plane a was used to disperse the poisonous fog was in 2011 following the extensive flood and subsequent swarm.
Miller said the department used to have their own spray-plane based at Kentucky Dam but sold that because of budgetary reasons and would now have to use an outside contractor.
