Maplewood Pesticide Use Map

Hi all,

It's pesticide spraying season again and I wanted to see if anyone was interested in joining a sort of citizen science project I'm working on in my free time. I was curious how much pesticide was being used in Maplewood so I started putting together a map of where I see pesticide use flags. (See image attached) You can tell that I've only been able to do a section of town so if anybody wants to help contribute by crowd sourcing this, please let me know and I can show you how you can help. All you need is a smart phone.

The purpose of the map is to answer a few questions:

• How much pesticide is being used? The town does not have this data.
• What are the differences between areas with a lot of use vs. little use? (eg. standing water/drainage problems that could be addressed in a cheaper and more effective way than pesticide use)
• Are there noticeable differences in ecology that could be impacted by pesticide use? (eg. Fewer fireflies, butterflies etc.) Despite some of the marketing, pesticides do not differentiate between species - they will kill all small creatures and potentially cause health issues to the many larger creatures that eat them or live near them.

The purpose of the map is not to shame or dox individuals (the information is public anyway) but I do want to see if we can do better as a community. Ecological issues aside, pesticides are FAR less effective yet more expensive than simply removing standing water. They also have known effects on humans and pets.

Lot's of great and reliable information here: https://www.pollinator-pathway.org/resources

Will

Are you referring to the "Mosquito Squad" signs that people put in their yards?  

weekends said:

Are you referring to the "Mosquito Squad" signs that people put in their yards?  

That is one of the companies that does spraying. Also Mosquito Shield. A lot of lawn companies will spray as well by default unless you specifically ask them not to. They are required to put a sign when they spray so you'll often just a small white flag with a picture of an adult, a child, and a dog crossed out like this:

Education is not going to dissuade people in the business from marketing to susceptible MAPSO homeowners (of which there are many). Their jobs depend on their not understanding it.

A few weeks ago, while out on foot at about noon, I saw a MS guy holding a battery-powered device emitting a “fog” directed at a group of arborvitaes in a front yard. When he finished, I asked him what it was for. “Mosquitoes”, he told me. I asked him where they were located. He told me “they hide out in the shrubbery”, and in the same sentence, told me “we’re always looking out for standing water to dump”.

Two days ago I ran into a guy from Essex County Public Works. He told me the men in the Mosquito Control division are the ones who run Essex County’s leaf collection in the fall. Before then, they spend most of their time in forested areas, spraying bodies of standing water that can’t be drained. He told me they’ll go to a homeowner’s property if summoned, and will do what is necessary to remedy the problem.

The health department could be interested in the findings of your study.  It would be interesting to see if there is a correlation between pesticide use and health conditions such as breathing problems, heart conditions, and life expectancy.  They have data on a number of these issues broken down by census tract.

dickf3 said:

Two days ago I ran into a guy from Essex County Public Works. He told me the men in the Mosquito Control division are the ones who run Essex County’s leaf collection in the fall. Before then, they spend most of their time in forested areas, spraying bodies of standing water that can’t be drained. He told me they’ll go to a homeowner’s property if summoned, and will do what is necessary to remedy the problem.

I called them a few years ago.  Super friendly and responsive.  But overall, no real solution.  They took a look around the property (probably for standing water) and didn't find the culprit.