PITTSFIELD, Mass. (AP) — Western Massachusetts health officials say recent heavy rain and heat could make it easier for more mosquitoes to breed in the Berkshires than last year.
The Berkshire Eagle reports that spraying could begin in some towns this month.
Chris Horton of the Berkshire County Mosquito Control Project says surveillance and treatment have increased so mosquito larvae can be killed in the Berkshires before they hatch. He says officials acted after last year's positive testing of West Nile virus and the more severe mosquito-transmitted disease Eastern Equine Encephalitis,
Horton said his three-person team may treat 120 surveillance spots in Pittsfield.
Horton says public health concerns in the Berkshires followed 29 insects testing positive for the West Nile virus in 2012 and two others testing positive for Eastern Equine Encephalitis.