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Costa Mesa mosquito-abatement plan is working so far, officials say

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Recent efforts to tamp down mosquitoes breeding in the artificial wetlands at Costa Mesa’s Fairview Park appear to be paying dividends, with fewer of the pests turning up in traps in the area, officials said this week.

Despite that, officials say, it’s important for residents to stay vigilant and do their part to eliminate possible breeding sites for the insects elsewhere — especially as mosquito-borne West Nile virus continues to be a threat throughout Orange County.

In early August, city officials unveiled a plan they hammered out with the county and the Orange County Mosquito and Vector Control District to deal with mosquitoes breeding in the Fairview Park wetlands, which were built in 2013 to help filter urban runoff.

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That plan included cutting excess vegetation, clearing dead plants from the ponds and cleaning area storm drains and catch basins.

The results so far are promising, Vector Control District spokesman Jared Dever said this week.

Early last month, about 125 southern house mosquitoes were turning up in traps in the wetlands on any given night, Dever said. Now that number is about 28, he said Monday.

Southern house mosquitoes are more likely to be carriers of West Nile.

Dever characterized those as “backyard breeders and indoor feeders” more likely to turn up in houses. They don’t typically breed in wetlands but more likely in standing water at nearby homes.

Dever added that no tule mosquitoes — a type typically found in or around the wetlands — have been discovered in traps recently.

Particularly important, Dever said, was clearing the ponds of overgrown vegetation to allow more effective use of a bacterial agent that Vector Control uses to kill mosquito larvae.

“The efforts were pretty immediate. Trap counts came down very, very dramatically right away,” Dever said.

“We need to be really careful,” said Costa Mesa Councilwoman Sandy Genis, the city’s representative on the Vector Control District board. “Just because the ponds are better doesn’t mean everyone should stop being vigilant about making sure there’s no standing water anywhere.”

Genis said she’s pleased by the work so far and “cautiously optimistic” about the results.

“It’s always nice when there’s a specific problem and you can sit down together and work out how to solve it,” she said.

The plan to deal with mosquitoes around the ponds was announced shortly after a mosquito trapped in Costa Mesa this summer tested positive for West Nile virus.

There have since been two additional positive tests for West Nile in Costa Mesa.

The virus has turned up in more than two dozen cities countywide this year. As of last week, 309 mosquito samples in Orange County had tested positive for West Nile — 43 more than at the same time last year, according to Dever.

The Orange County Health Care Agency has recorded 15 West Nile infections in people this year. No deaths have been reported.

Last year, the virus infected 97 people in Orange County and was blamed for eight deaths, according to health officials.

Symptoms of West Nile can include fever, headache, body aches, convulsions and muscle weakness. Experts say people who believe they are infected should seek medical attention immediately.

luke.money@latimes.com

Twitter: @LukeMMoney

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