File Photo (Image Credit: CFJC Today)

By Dylana Kneeshaw

HELICOPTER LARVICIDE TREATMENT

Aerial mosquito control work underway along Thompson Valley

Jun 5, 2025 | 4:39 PM

KAMLOOPS — Residents in the Thompson Valley may have noticed an increase in helicopter activity this week, as mosquito control work ramps up.

Now that sections of the North Thompson River have peaked, control teams have been able to start treating still bodies of water with larvicide. The work is done as part of the Thompson Nicola Regional District’s Nuisance Mosquito Control Program and the targeted drops are expected to make a dent in the amount of pests plaguing area residents this summer.

It’s a fast operation to land, load and take off for another round of aerial mosquito control. This week, the Setetkwe Environmental team is covering bodies of water from the top of the North Thompson down into the South Thompson area.

“Usually, we try and wait until it peaks but sometimes it’ll hit multiple peaks throughout the year,” explains Quinton Maurer, a mosquito controller with Setetkwe. “It’ll peak, go down, come back up and peak again, so we just have to keep an eye on the river, basically. It all comes down to the river most of the time.”

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According to Maurer, when the river peaks, water can reach higher pockets of mosquito eggs, which then quickly develop into larvae. That’s where the pellet-style larvicide comes in.

“Basically, we’re having the helicopter come by with the big metal seeder on it. We’re adding our mosquito larvicide to it, Vectobac, and it’s going to take off and go to all of our sites that we have mapped out.”

It gets rid of nuisance mosquitoes, but Vectobac isn’t harmful to other animals or humans.

“There’s no chemicals. There’s no liquid. It’s a bacteria formulated on corn cobs so it kind of looks like chicken feed. The little pellets look like chicken feed,” says Setetkwe co-owner Cheryl Phippen. “The seeder that’s hanging underneath the helicopter is just like a great big fertilizer spreader, so the pellets are dropping down and out they go and shoot out all over the pond.”

A successful treatment will take care of billions of the bugs, but Phippen says it’s still too early to say how prevalent mosquitoes will be this summer.

“If it’s hot and sunny, they’ll have a very short life cycle — maybe one or two weeks. But if it gets cool and moist for a much longer time, [they will] be active for a much longer time,” she explains, “so we just have to wait and see what the weather does.”

To limit the amount of bites you may receive this season, a reliable repellent is recommended.

“Doesn’t matter what we do, we’re never going to get them all,” notes Phippen, “so if you are getting bit in the evening, use mosquito repellent. Something with DEET in it is really good at repelling mosquitoes. Just follow the directions on the can.”