Mosquitoes swarm Texas town, officials blame climate change - Fox News
Officials blame climate change as mosquitoes swarm Texas town | Fox News
Can mosquitoes carry COVID-19 and infect another person?
Dr. Manny Alvarez answers if mosquitoes can be a carrier of coronavirus and transmit the illness to another person
Officials are pointing the finger at climate change as a Texas town battles with another spring of exploding mosquito populations.
"If you open the car door to go somewhere, you’ve got 10 mosquitoes inside," Mith Varley, a resident of the Houston suburb of Conroe, Texas, said of the issue, according to a report in the Washington Post.
Varley, who has lived in the area of Montgomery County for nearly 10 years, told the Washington Post he has never seen it worse. While the area of Texas has always been known as an ideal mosquito habitat, flood-inducing rains over the last few weeks have given the pesky insects even more ideal areas to breed and spread.
WHO APPROVES SECOND VACCINE AGAINST THE MOSQUITO-BORNE DISEASE DENGUE AS OUTBREAKS INTENSIFY
Mosquitoes fly over Sand Island, which is no longer an island, as unprecedented drought reduces Colorado River and Lake Mead to critical water levels on September 18, 2022 in Lake Mead National Recreation Area, Nevada. (David McNew/Getty Images)
"They are attracted to me. No one else gets mosquitoes like me," Linda Adams, a local resident, told the Washington Post. "I was also a redhead as a child. I think that has something to do with it."
Adams said she never leaves the house without dousing herself in bug spray, arguing that it is the "only way I can get through the day."
"It has to be at least 40 percent DEET," Adams said.
Josue Medina, a local tennis instructor, shared a similar sentiment, telling the Washington Post that this year’s swarm not only has more mosquitoes, but larger ones.
"The mosquito season is always bad, but right now it’s worse," he said.
I-45 running past downtown is shown from the Chase Tower observation floor Tuesday, Sept. 7, 2021, in Houston. ((Photo by Brett Coomer/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images))
UNDERSTANDING THE SEVERITY OF THE MOSQUITO-BORNE DISEASE DENGUE
Max Vigilant, the director of mosquito and vector control in nearby Harris County, told the Washington Post that sampling so far shows mosquito levels comparable to 2022 and 2023, though it is nearly impossible to fully count the mosquito population.
However, residents noticing a worsening problem can point to climate change as the cause, Vigilant argued, noting that "hotter temperatures" are coming to the area earlier in the year, making it more likely to see a large amount of mosquitoes.
"This is the impact that climate change has had on Harris Country," Vigilant told the outlet.
Young man spraying mosquito / insect repellent in the forrest, insect protection (iStock)
Harris County hosts over 50 species of mosquitoes, the report notes, while the county’s public health department, where Vigilant works, focuses its work with pesticides on targeting those that can carry diseases such as West Nile Virus.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
The Harris County Public Health Department did not immediately respond to a Fox News Digital request for comment.
Meanwhile, residents continue to battle the problem while attempting to carry on with their daily lives.
"This right here," Medina told the Washington Post, pointing to a large red welt by his knee. "This one got me yesterday."
Related Knowledge Center: Climate economics
Climate change is now a driver of the world’s economy. The impact is profound:
- Catastrophic weather events — hurricanes, floods, droughts, high temperatures — are more frequent and more extreme. The cost can be measured in both the initial damage caused and the longer-term impact on the economy.
- Vulnerable communities are increasing climate-related investments, hardening infrastructure and taking other protective measures.
- Investment in carbon capture and storage technologies is increasingly rapidly.
- Governments are making investments and crafting regulations to reduce emissions of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
On top of all of this is the cost of uncertainty. As the Fourth National Climate Assessment, released in 2018 by the U.S. Global Change Research Program, says, “The assumption that current and future climate conditions will resemble the recent past is no longer valid.”