To help prevent the spread of mosquito-borne viruses, the District performs mosquito control treatments using truck-mounted equipment.

 Ultra Low Volume Applications

Oasis:  Truck-mounted applications are scheduled within the boundaries of Avenue 81(north), Johnson st (east), Avenue 84 (south), Hwy 86(west). 

When: Sunday, August 10th- Tuesday, August 12th, 2025
Time: Applications are planned between 12:00a.m. and 5:00a.m., weather permitting.
Product: Merus 3.0
Targeted mosquito: Adulticide (Adult Mosquitoes)

 Control of Adult Mosquitoes

In the case of an increase in the number of mosquitoes in a particular area, or detection of an arthropod-borne virus in mosquitoes, wild birds, or humans, the District may decide to conduct ground ultra-low volume (ULV) adulticiding activities.

The District conducts adulticide treatments when there is an elevated public health threat from arboviruses according to the District’s risk assessment model.

Adult mosquito control is routinely performed by ultra-low volume (ULV) or barrier sprays using adulticides registered with US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). ULV applications involve delivering a fine mist of the chemical product at specific times onto the targeted flying adult mosquitoes using special spray equipment mounted on trucks.

Barrier applications involve the misting of tall stands of vegetation in areas with high counts of mosquitoes or elevated virus activity to control resting mosquitoes with barrier equipment attached to all-terrain vehicles (ATV) or by backpack carried by field technicians. 

Ground ULV is carried out usually in urban areas with special equipment mounted on the truck.

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Wide Area Larvicide Spraying: Summer 2025

When: Saturdays from 1am to 7am. July 19th through September 13th, 2025

Application Method: Wide Area Larvicide Spraying (WALS)

•  The District's WALS method uses a powerful truck-mounted sprayer that combines high volumes of air and low volumes of liquid larvicide mixed with water to efficiently treat a wide variety of mosquito breeding sites. 
• WALS effectively reaches small and hard to find mosquito habitats that can potentially collect water and are ideal for mosquito breeding. 

Application Product: VectoBac WDG

• The product used for this type of application is an organic OMRI rated product. This product uses a type of naturally occuring bacteria.
• When applied as directed, the product will not harm people, pets, nor wildlife including aquatic life, other insects, and honeybees. 

Vectobac WDG

• Safety Data Sheet
• Label

How does the District determine where to conduct mosquito control applications?

When determining an area for area-wide applications for the coming season, the District’s Integrated Vector Management team analyzes monthly historical Aedes aegypti population data by city or unincorporated county area to forecast peak mosquito activity for the coming season. Then using GIS software, District staff define areas within cities or unincorporated areas with the highest Aedes aegypti activity by examining and visualizing service requests, larval samples, and invasive Aedes trap count data. Based on this data analysis, specific sites within the District are prioritized and targeted for area-wide application to drive down the forecasted peak in the coming season. Once sites are determined and the budget for the coming fiscal year is approved by the Board of Trustees, the IVM team begins planning for the area-wide application to determine the most appropriate means of public outreach to the affected local government entities and residents of the area-wide application area as well as to finalize the means of application and method of efficacy assessment.

2025 Neighborhoods:

Palm Desert

Palm Desert

Palm Springs

Cathedral City