If you live in South Dade then you probably saw, smelled or felt the familiar spray of naled last night. Even though the great Zika pandemic never panned out last year, the government is still riding the high (and reaping the monetary benefits) from last summer’s hype. So, last night, in order to combat the black salt marsh mosquitoes (not known to carry the Zika virus or other tropical diseases) or to get everyone used to spraying for Zika, Miami-Dade County sent airplanes over wide portions of Homestead, the Redland, Florida City, Cutler Bay, and South Miami-Dade.

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If you’re surprised you didn’t know, perhaps it’s because the Miami-Dade County Department of Solid Waste Management announced the return of the planes, “…after sundown, planes would dispense the pesticide Dibrom over the affected area, weather permitting.” Of course, the county’s statement makes no mention as to what Dibrom is, so it’s likely many residents thought it was a new chemical. Especially given how many thousands and thousands of bees died last summer, and how many people got sick after breathing in the poisonous spray.

But no. Dibrom and naled are the same thing.

See?

“‘Over the years, we have used both names in our news releases,’ Gayle Love, a spokesperson for Miami-Dade Mosquito Control, says. ‘In this instance, I used ‘Dibrom’ when I prepared the release. Dibrom — also known as naled — is the insecticide we have used successfully for the past 40 years to address the black salt marsh mosquitoes. We reference both names in our online fact sheet, which describes the insecticides used in our Mosquito Control program.'”

If you are in a spray zone, stay indoors and make sure your windows and doors are properly sealed. Make sure your pets are in, too. And cover up, or better yet, bring your kids outside toys, inside. If you cannot, make sure to wipe them down before they play on them the next day.

More from the article:

“Naled belongs to a family of pesticides called “organophosphates,” which have been linked to a host of human ills for the past half-century. In fact, multiple studies have linked farmworkers who’ve been exposed to organophosphates with slower brain functioning and poor psychomotor function. According to PBS, other studies have linked the pesticide group to brain tumors, liver damage, leukemia, and birth defects.”

And just remember, this is how much our elected officials care about us: naled is authorized for use in the United States- even though they know how dangerous it is, even though it’s banned in the European Union.
Source: Miami New Times