TEXAS After Harvey, 910th takes on mission to spray for mosquitoes

Staff report

JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS

Since the 910th Airlift Wing’s aerial spray mission team began operations in Texas on Sept. 9 to control mosquitoes in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, it has treated more than 1.1 million acres in eastern Texas.

The 910th operates the Department of Defense’s only large-area, fixed-wing aerial spray capability to control pest insect populations, eliminate undesired, invasive vegetation and disperse oil spills in large bodies of water.

The 910th’s aerial spray missions use only Environmental Protection Agency-registered materials, applying no more than 1 ounce per acre, or less than one shot glass of material for an area the size of a football field.

For this mosquito control mission, the Texas Department of State Health Services selected a material called naled, which according to the EPA, is effective in amounts not large enough to cause any concern for the health of humans, including children and pregnant women, or pets.

Because of large amounts of standing, polluted water, the numbers of pest insects have increased significantly, impacting first-responders and recovery workers as clean-up and repair efforts continue.

More than 90 Airforce Reserve personnel based at Youngstown Air Reserve Station in Vienna are working from a base of operations at the Kelly Field Annex.