Thai Public Health Ministry Launches Nationwide War On Mosquito-Breeding Grounds

[TinoThailand]

In Hong Kong it has been against the law for many, many decades to have mosquito-breeding areas on one's property. Any found by or reported to the police (for example, by neighbours) results in a substantial fine. Result: there are hardly any mosquitos. No chemical sprays, no damage to the environment, nothing. Brilliant!

Yea, Hong Kong must look like Paradise!!

[Kered]

In our area normally the local Health centre arranges for a team to fumigate the Klongs and are happy to fumigate individual properties for a small donation, a great service and I would be all for extending it and doing it more often. I do not think that it affects the environment as there are many other insects to feed the fish including on my property. If you have had friends who contracted Dengue fever and in my case one died you will change your priorities and get rid of the health risk and nature will then take care of the rest.

[TinoThailand]

Mosquito vs Human.

Winner: Musquito

Don't do anything, just accept it, live wel, eat well and you will be fine

Maybe I'm lucky to be European, Africans for exemple are weaker fot this i just red. Maybe i had it already. I was dizy and sweating after they bite me sometimes.

Big black and white, fung kem mak mak

Just calm down, it will be over fast he said

[TinoThailand]

In our area normally the local Health centre arranges for a team to fumigate the Klongs and are happy to fumigate individual properties for a small donation, a great service and I would be all for extending it and doing it more often. I do not think that it affects the environment as there are many other insects to feed the fish including on my property. If you have had friends who contracted Dengue fever and in my case one died you will change your priorities and get rid of the health risk and nature will then take care of the rest.

Sorry your friend died, sad to hear.

But, this is nature taking care of us... maybe? Once they inject you before they suck the blood out you will get slower and more hot. This way they can sense you more and catch you again and again.

[Kered]

Mosquito vs Human.

Winner: Musquito

Don't do anything, just accept it, live wel, eat well and you will be fine

Maybe I'm lucky to be European, Africans for exemple are weaker fot this i just red. Maybe i had it already. I was dizy and sweating after they bite me sometimes.

Big black and white, fung kem mak mak

Just calm down, it will be over fast he said

Good luck mate!

[personchester]

Well I for one will be happy with no mosquitoes.

But what will be the impact on the ecology. Will the destruction of some of the breeding areas add to flood problems if a flood should arise.

There is how ever a lot of little things people can do on their own premisses. That will lessen the problem a little bit.

Of course it is bad for the ecology. But there are priorities....

Instead of spraying with chemicals that kill every insect there is a virus that infects the larvals and it multiply itself till all larvals are dead.

Works very well, but I never saw it in Thailand, only in Europe, and I don't hope that this government get any good ideas.

I assume you mean to say that you don't expect that this government has, (or gets) any good ideas, and that you hope that they might get some good ideas.

[Kered]

Well I for one will be happy with no mosquitoes.

But what will be the impact on the ecology. Will the destruction of some of the breeding areas add to flood problems if a flood should arise.

There is how ever a lot of little things people can do on their own premisses. That will lessen the problem a little bit.

Of course it is bad for the ecology. But there are priorities....

Instead of spraying with chemicals that kill every insect there is a virus that infects the larvals and it multiply itself till all larvals are dead.

Works very well, but I never saw it in Thailand, only in Europe, and I don't hope that this government get any good ideas.

I assume you mean to say that you don't expect that this government has, (or gets) any good ideas, and that you hope that they might get some good ideas.

Don't be obsessed with the Government i.e,. Yingluck & co who have bigger things to think about like getting brother a free pardon. You perhaps forget that there are many hard working dedicated Thais in local Government at District and even Village level trying to improve the Health and welfare of the local community including expats.

[hellodolly]

Well I for one will be happy with no mosquitoes.

But what will be the impact on the ecology. Will the destruction of some of the breeding areas add to flood problems if a flood should arise.

There is how ever a lot of little things people can do on their own premisses. That will lessen the problem a little bit.

Of course it is bad for the ecology. But there are priorities....

Instead of spraying with chemicals that kill every insect there is a virus that infects the larvals and it multiply itself till all larvals are dead.

Works very well, but I never saw it in Thailand, only in Europe, and I don't hope that this government get any good ideas.

Sounds like a useable method. No environmental damage, let's hope. Oh my but those persistent pests are difficult to love.

I remember some Canadian varieties as particularly fierce. Although most people can easily outrun them, if you look back over your shoulder you'll see hundreds trying to gain on you. They've been known to take-down Caribou in the Tundra.

I was told that in High Levels Alberta they make love to turkeys.

Also told that if you drink unsweetened grapefruit juice they leave you alone,

[anterian]

I hate mossies, My daughter is a mossie specialist, I said what possible benefit do they have, she said they are essential to swifts and many bats, and their larvae to many fish. I said they are badly designed no other insect needs to suck blood before it can reproduced. She started talking about, fleas, ticks, lice and various other insects. I guess you can't win arguing with an entomologist, but you can learn how to fight back against the enemy.

My home is mossie free, outside I rarely get bitten (actually bitten is the wrong word, what should I say, Punctured?). About once a month they spray my village, this does more harm than good, it removes the old tired mossies and clears the field next day for the new keen lot that have just emerged. Mossies have a two week breeding cycle and every day a new batch emerge, so the only way to be effective is to spray every day for a fortnight.

[corkman]

Well I for one will be happy with no mosquitoes.

But what will be the impact on the ecology. Will the destruction of some of the breeding areas add to flood problems if a flood should arise.

There is how ever a lot of little things people can do on their own premisses. That will lessen the problem a little bit.

Of course it is bad for the ecology. But there are priorities....

Instead of spraying with chemicals that kill every insect there is a virus that infects the larvals and it multiply itself till all larvals are dead.

Works very well, but I never saw it in Thailand, only in Europe, and I don't hope that this government get any good ideas.

If it wasn't dreamt up but some idiot in government, then it will be rejected as nonesense - western ideas are, after all, poison to the idiots in charge.

[ginjag]

Bkk canals come to mind first, outside near every Thai rural house - waste water lay in puddles. Oh sorry the canals were cleaned and dredged after the floods-I forgot. How about all the drains in every town street-blocked with Shizen ?? TIT

[Dap]

Well I for one will be happy with no mosquitoes.

But what will be the impact on the ecology. Will the destruction of some of the breeding areas add to flood problems if a flood should arise.

There is how ever a lot of little things people can do on their own premisses. That will lessen the problem a little bit.

One thing at a time. First they'll take care of the mosquito problem. Then they will have time to fix the environment. Then they can create flood-retention areas. Then they can fill them in to stop the mosquitoes. Then they can fix the environment. Then they can create more flood-retention areas. Then they can.....

Don't try to criticize the lack of foresight and overall planning. "This is Thailand. You don't understand the Thai way."

Afraid you are looking in the mirror I do understand the Thai way Next month it will be a thing of history.

The Thai way for hundreds of years has been to ignore them.

You are trying to force Western ways on to them.

Despite the fact that as has already been pointed out there are ways to do it with out poisoning the environment but they would still have a big effect on all the fish and other wild life that live on them.

It is my understanding that there are some thing like 400 different types of mosquito's and only a few are harmful.

Never been there but Chiang Mai has a insect museum run by the worlds foremost expert on mosquito's.

Gleaned from the book "The Fever" authored by Sonia Shah; Of the worlds 3,200 species of mosquito there are about 430 known species of Anopheles and at least 70 of these species are known to carry malaria.

[khaowong1]

Kill em all, let God sort em out!

[bigbamboo]

Get PC Chalerm on the case. He'll have 'em all shot.

[executiveoffice]

I can tell you first hand that pesiticides will be used and people will be exposed to them. I was on a part of koh phangan with alot of people and workers came through spraying pesticides EVERYWhERE!!! THey didnt care if people breathed them in. WHen will thailand get the picture that pesticides are NOT SAFE ANYWHErE ANYtiME, countries wont buy their crops worldwide because they use so many pesiticides

COme on thailand!!! their are natural ecological solutions to everything. I.e. bring plant plants that attract the insects that eat the mosquitos...plant neem trees around breeding grounds.....ect etc..

I hope Permaculture can again save the day here...as it has for many other countries..in many different situations.

geoff lawton - all the worlds problems, can be solved in a garden"

‘THOUGH THE PROBLEMS OF THE WORLD ARE INCREASINGLY MORE COMPLEX, THE SOLUTIONS REMAIN EMBARRASSINGLY SIMPLE....’

- Bill Mollison, co-founder of the world-wide permaculture movement

Edited May 12, 2012 by executiveoffice

[geriatrickid]

The most effective and least costly method is prevention through removal of breeding grounds, support of natural predators and the use of spraying in peak season. The problem with applying this approach in Thailand is that "balance" is not understood. The result is that natural predator habitats get poisoned, the birds, reptiles and bats that devour the buggers are killed off, and people do not work together. All it takes is one breeding zone on a soi to cause a problem. The beasties spread out and the population grows exponentially. Unfortunately, the Hong Kong approach does work and that means people have to give up some "property" rights. It would be impossible to apply the Hong Kong solution in Thailand as some people do whatever the heck they want on their property with no thought of the consequences to others. My fiend lives in a nice area. He has one neighbour that burns rubbish in the front of the house. Everyone down wind with their well kept homes has to suffer the noxious burning plastic fumes.

[bigbamboo]

Well I for one will be happy with no mosquitoes.

But what will be the impact on the ecology. Will the destruction of some of the breeding areas add to flood problems if a flood should arise.

There is how ever a lot of little things people can do on their own premisses. That will lessen the problem a little bit.

Of course it is bad for the ecology. But there are priorities....

Instead of spraying with chemicals that kill every insect there is a virus that infects the larvals and it multiply itself till all larvals are dead.

Works very well, but I never saw it in Thailand, only in Europe, and I don't hope that this government get any good ideas.

Sounds like a useable method. No environmental damage, let's hope. Oh my but those persistent pests are difficult to love.

I remember some Canadian varieties as particularly fierce. Although most people can easily outrun them, if you look back over your shoulder you'll see hundreds trying to gain on you. They've been known to take-down Caribou in the Tundra.

I was told that in High Levels Alberta they make love to turkeys.

Also told that if you drink unsweetened grapefruit juice they leave you alone,

Are you talking about Canadians or mosquitoes?

[LisuLover]

Chiang Mai mosquito museum. Wow!! The 'ting tong' guy that runs the place has got mosquito strains named after him. He told me that he goes up into the mountain and sits in a bush until he feels a bite. As the mosquitos consume him, he'll sit still and let them feed for a minute then jamjar them and take them home. He studies the mossy and studies his bodily reaction and fever. Then he issues a scientific paper to anyone in the world who will listen. I asked him how many times he'd had malaria and he laughed and said, "too many to count". If you go, get covered in deet, the place is thick with mossies.

[RoninTech]

I remember some Canadian varieties as particularly fierce. Although most people can easily outrun them, if you look back over your shoulder you'll see hundreds trying to gain on you. They've been known to take-down Caribou in the Tundra.

The good thing about Northern Albertan mozzies is they are the size of small sparrows so you can easily see them. The horse flies are so big they can carry off small children.

Getting back to the OT, Dengue is also on Koh Lipe where we vacation every year. Mrs RoninTech ended up with the hemorrhagic variety and spent some time in the hospital in Hat Yai in February. Nurse and Dr on the island mis-diagnosed it (stomach bug!!) so she went through hell until we realized it was something really serious and scarpered to the mainland. 15 minutes in a walk in clinic in Satun and one simple blood test later and we knew what it was. They told us to get to hospital ASAP based on her platelet levels. It would have really sucked without our Thai friends there to help us. Unfortunately someone may die on Lipe after being told it's something that isn't potentially life threatening and while waiting for the antibiotics to work, which they never will, it could progress to DSS and being so far from a hospital you'd be SOL.

There's no vaccine and you can't stop it once you get it, just ride it out and deal with the symptoms. Getting an IV in you is key when you are puking/shitting/bleeding everything out. If your platelets drop low enough you progress to Dengue shock syndrome and need a blood/platelet transfusion or it's game over. You could actually see little pin pricks of blood on her skin that I originally though was from shaving her legs when we first noticed it until the Dr in the hospital filled us in. She still has bad days months later and has to go see a liver specialist here in Canada as they think there her blood still isn't "right" and there may be some long term damage (that might be from the big Changs though ).

I'm pretty sure this was the second time she's caught it as she got sick last time too, but nowhere like this. There's 4 known varieties and once you get one you can't get that one again HOWEVER if you get one of the other one's it'll be worse. There's lots of ponds, puddles, fountains and other standing fresh water all over Lipe so I wouldn't be surprised if the number of incidents keeps increasing now that it has a foothold.

It was a big wake-up call for us and we'll be much more careful next year and part of me wonders if I should even take that chance...

[TeddyFlyfisherDavis]

Breeding ground...Hmmmm...Isn't that just about every rice field in Thailand...? Rhetorical...

[oldsailor35]

For those worried about the ecology with this anti mosquito program. Let me say that where i come from in South East Queensland, the spraying of the mosquito breeding grounds , namely the Mangrove swamps has been going on for several years without any damage to the ecology, and is an annual ongoing programme. If there were any problems, the Queensland and Northern NSW governments would not allow it.

Panic over !

[airconsult]

In Hong Kong it has been against the law for many, many decades to have mosquito-breeding areas on one's property. Any found by or reported to the police (for example, by neighbours) results in a substantial fine. Result: there are hardly any mosquitos. No chemical sprays, no damage to the environment, nothing. Brilliant!

Wouldn't work here in BKK - one of the major sources of stagnant water in the hot summer months is BMA keeping all the gates closed on the khlongs.

Many times I have asked why..... at this time of year they close the gates and let the water level in the khlongs go down so officially they are ready to absorb hard rain from the start of the season. The result is green algae outbursts killing the fish (nice smell) weeds growing out and choking them - and of course ideal grounds for the dear mozzies.

Those of you on this forum in inner bangkok (probably most) yes, they let water flow in the major khlongs, so it just looks brown to you as the boats go by.

My answer - give the control on the gates in BKK khlongs back to royal irrigation - at this time of year the river is higher than the khlongs - let water flow in from the river around Rangsit - let it go east to Minburi, and then south through Prawet and Samut Prakern to the Khlong outlets to the sea. This would preserve the fish ecology, prevent the algae outbreaks and lessen the weed problems. Also moving water reduces the mozzies.

Cheers

Edited May 12, 2012 by airconsult

[easylife]

Dengue fever must be eradicated. Have you people seen the long term effect on people. Wake up and let hem try to do their jobs. Bugger the mossie.

And what are the long term effects?

[flarefade]

Giving "carte blanche" to pesticide manufactures will create a health problem many orders of magnitude greater than any threat from Mosquitos. People who are not used to living in the tropics will not fully appreciate this.

[airconsult]

Dengue fever must be eradicated. Have you people seen the long term effect on people. Wake up and let hem try to do their jobs. Bugger the mossie.

And what are the long term effects?

I *shudder* to think - many apologies, tasteless joke, but I apologise by saying that I personally caught malaria on a contract in africa, and it was resurgent after 5 years (unusual, but has been know to happen up to 30 years later). Shivering, vomiting, pain in my joints worse than your greatest nightmares of arthritis.....

Dengue carries a personal horror for me, as when my malaria resurfaced (I think due to not enough antibiotics originally) I was in Cairns during a dengue outbreak and it was mistakenly diagnosed as that until blood tests came back.

Cheers

[noitom]

They are "launching" and cracking down again. A Thai launch is an oxymoron. Same as a Thai crackdown. A Thai "launch" however, is much more exciting because nothing needs to be done. Success can be claimed more fervently. All the fanfare is merely about the "launch." Even in any of their countless hundreds of "crackdowns" they usually show a token action/arrest/photograph or something. With a "launch" there is no need to followup since a launch merely means to catapult or set afloat like a ship or a rocket. The ship or rocket can always just remain in the air or at sea and never arrive at a port or landing. The rocket can just disintegrate like passing wind in church or a traditional Thai launch, the oxymoron.

Why is this mosquito launch called a launch anyway? Why isn't it just another "crackdown." As in, they are cracking down on mosquito breeding grounds. Cracking down seems much more appropriate than launching in this case. if anyone knows the difference between a "Thai launch" and a Thai crackdown," it would be very interesting to understand this distinction clearly. Even more interesting would be a comparison of a Thai launch, a Thai crackdown and passing wind in church for the benefit of clarification.

[airconsult]

They are "launching" and cracking down again. A Thai launch is an oxymoron. Same as a Thai crackdown. A Thai "launch" however, is much more exciting because nothing needs to be done. Success can be claimed more fervently. All the fanfare is merely about the "launch." Even in any of their countless hundreds of "crackdowns" they usually show a token action/arrest/photograph or something. With a "launch" there is no need to followup since a launch merely means to catapult or set afloat like a ship or a rocket. The ship or rocket can always just remain in the air or at sea and never arrive at a port or landing. The rocket can just disintegrate like passing wind in church or a traditional Thai launch, the oxymoron.

Why is this mosquito launch called a launch anyway? Why isn't it just another "crackdown." As in, they are cracking down on mosquito breeding grounds. Cracking down seems much more appropriate than launching in this case. if anyone knows the difference between a "Thai launch" and a Thai crackdown," it would be very interesting to understand this distinction clearly. Even more interesting would be a comparison of a Thai launch, a Thai crackdown and passing wind in church for the benefit of clarification.

Hmm.... tricky...... let me have a go...

A "Crackdown" is when something has attracted popular attention in the paper and some MP has rung you up and said it's very important you pay attention to this as long as it's in the paper anyway.... 3 days.... forgotten.....(always excepting when you think you can get more tea money out of it - eg porn-street-seller crack downs - in which case it lasts for 2 weeks until you have finished collecting the extra)

A "Launch" is when you call up all the people you know doing it and warn them more money is needed to keep them out of the paper, and if any MP remembers in 3 days you'll have to bust one of them, but no worries, I'll lose the evidence and we'll drop the charges after a week when the paper forgets.

Is that about right?

*disclaimer - I love Thailand and I adore living here - the cost of up to 30% corruption in my view is much, much less than the constant annoyance of the nanny governments of the west - I joke because I love Thailand

Cheers

EDIT - sorry, forgot "passing wind in church" - I do that at every opportunity, so can't really call myself unbiased.

Edited May 12, 2012 by airconsult

[misterfloppy]

And what about all the fish, birds, bats, dragonflies and other animals that live on mosquitos as a staple diet?

-mel.

They'll all be dead from the insecticide used to kill the mosquitoes...

[noitom]

They are "launching" and cracking down again. A Thai launch is an oxymoron. Same as a Thai crackdown. A Thai "launch" however, is much more exciting because nothing needs to be done. Success can be claimed more fervently. All the fanfare is merely about the "launch." Even in any of their countless hundreds of "crackdowns" they usually show a token action/arrest/photograph or something. With a "launch" there is no need to followup since a launch merely means to catapult or set afloat like a ship or a rocket. The ship or rocket can always just remain in the air or at sea and never arrive at a port or landing. The rocket can just disintegrate like passing wind in church or a traditional Thai launch, the oxymoron.

Why is this mosquito launch called a launch anyway? Why isn't it just another "crackdown." As in, they are cracking down on mosquito breeding grounds. Cracking down seems much more appropriate than launching in this case. if anyone knows the difference between a "Thai launch" and a Thai crackdown," it would be very interesting to understand this distinction clearly. Even more interesting would be a comparison of a Thai launch, a Thai crackdown and passing wind in church for the benefit of clarification.

Hmm.... tricky...... let me have a go...

A "Crackdown" is when something has attracted popular attention in the paper and some MP has rung you up and said it's very important you pay attention to this as long as it's in the paper anyway.... 3 days.... forgotten.....(always excepting when you think you can get more tea money out of it - eg porn-street-seller crack downs - in which case it lasts for 2 weeks until you have finished collecting the extra)

A "Launch" is when you call up all the people you know doing it and warn them more money is needed to keep them out of the paper, and if any MP remembers in 3 days you'll have to bust one of them, but no worries, I'll lose the evidence and we'll drop the charges after a week when the paper forgets.

Is that about right?

*disclaimer - I love Thailand and I adore living here - the cost of up to 30% corruption in my view is much, much less than the constant annoyance of the nanny governments of the west - I joke because I love Thailand

Cheers

EDIT - sorry, forgot "passing wind in church" - I do that at every opportunity, so can't really call myself unbiased.

Thank you very much for the clarification. You made it easy to conclude that a "Thai launch" and a "Thai crackdown" are analogous to the "effect" of passing wind in church and all seem to have the same chemical properties.

[GentlemanJim]

When I first started coming to Thailand about 8 years ago, there were always adverts on Television for those Mozzie machines that blow smoke (I think they use diesel don't they) and you use them in the garden etc. Since coming to live here for the last 5 years I have never seen the advert again. Does anyone have one? are they any good? if so where can I buy them?