Sparta Wants To Upgrade Its Mosquito Spray System

City Of Sparta updating its efforts to protect the community against mosquitoes.

City Council approved the bidding process for a new spray machine. Public Works Director Dillard Quick said the new equipment would be in place for next spring.

“Our machine is probably 25 years old and it’s on its last leg,” Quick said. “So we’re going to try to purchase a new machine and try to probably change chemicals that we use. Mosquitoes build up a tolerance to a certain type of spray. So we’re probably going to try to change the type of material that we spray.”

In addition, Quick said the current machine uses a chemical that has become increasingly more difficult to locate. That has driven up its price.

Quick said the process usually begins each spring as humidity increases and the ponding of water leads to breeding sites.

“We’ll actually go through the streets and spray all,” Quick said. “It usually takes about two or three nights. When we do, we do it once a month normally, but the guy will spray the parks he’ll go through and spray the streets. And reason it takes two or three nights is because you have to do it in the afternoon between five and eight when the mosquitoes first come out.”

Council will examine the bids in the coming weeks.