No! Our services are completely free. This includes everything from home inspections, adulticide or pesticide application, mosquitofish application, and educational presentations. Our district is funded through a small percentage of your property taxes every year. To learn more about how special districts operate please view our "About Special Districts" page.  To learn more about how district uses our funds please view our "Transparency" page. 

No, you should not expect a call back if you have requested a service. All of our services requests are transcribed and serviced within 72 hours of submission. If our technicians are in need of more information to complete the request, they will contact you directly. If you continue to experience problems after 1-2 weeks, please feel free to submit additional requests.

No, you do not have to be present to be serviced. The majority of our services do not require access to your yard. Adulticide applications are conducted early in the morning by truck-mounted equipment. These chemicals will drift over your property and kill mosquitoes on the wing in your yards. If a technician requires property access to complete the request, they will reach you directly via contacts you have provided.

No. At this time, our district handles mosquito related issues exclusivily. If you need assistance with other pests such as fleas, ticks, or wasps it is recommended that you contact a private pest control company that specalizes in those organisms. 

If you have a question/concern that is not answered by our website and it is not a request for service, you may reach us by phone or email with the information listed on our "contact us" page. 

You may see white trucks with our logo on them between the hours of 2 - 6 am. These trucks are conducting adulticide applications to your neighborhood. The mist from the spray will float over your property killing any mosquito it comes into contact with in flight. The purpose is to reduce flying, adult mosquitoes in your area. If you would like to learn more about adulticide application, please visit our "Integrated Vector Management" page and click on the "Microbial and Chemical Control" section.

All of our pesticides are registered safe for use by the US Environmental Protection Agency and California Department of Pesticide Regulations. The low rates of application, plus the quick and natural breakdown of the product exposed to UV light and water ensures that they pose minimal risk to people and animals. In addition, adulticide applications are conducted between 2 and 6 am to reduce human exposure. We urge you to stay indoors while our technicians are conducting spray activities. If you come in contact of the chemical products being applied there is minimal impact, however if you feel concerned at all please contact your health care professional promptly.

For more specific health information, you can consult the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or the National Pesticide Information Center (NPIC).

The products we use are designed to specifically target mosquitos and have minimal effects on non-target insects. In addition, our application methods minimize any adverse impact because our products are applied early in the morning before butterflies and bees begin leaving the protection of their resting place to forage. Finally, areas of known bee hive locations are avoided for extra protection.

The California Health and Safety Code requires every employee who handles, applies, or supervises the use of any insecticide for public health be certified by the California Department of Public Health (DPH) as a Certified Vector Control Technician. After the initial certification, technicians must continue to meet established continuing education hours requirement every two years to maintain their license to ensure public safety.

If you or your neighbor has an unmaintained swimming pool, please submit a service request with the address where the neglected pool is located. These pools can produce thousands of mosquitos every week. A mosquito control technician will be out to inspect and treat the pool if necessary. Remember, not all green pools have been left untreated! A technician may add mosquitofish or apply larvacide to the pool. This does not alter the color or appearance of the pool, but it does eliminate the mosquito larva. Technicians tag and regularly check on unmaintained pools to ensure no larva is present and reapply treatment if necessary.

Yes! Anyone who reports a neglected swimming pool will remain anonymous. All information filled out on the service request form is confidential. 

If you believe that you have West Nile virus then you should contact your health care professional immediately. The sooner you are diagnosed, the sooner you can receive help. After visiting with your health care professional, you may contact us for mosquito control assistance if desired.

The risk of contracting one of these diseases locally is very low. To be infected by any of these diseases, one must first have to be bitten by a mosquito that is currently carrying the infection. We have Aedes mosquitos in the county capable of transmitting Dengue, Zika, and Chikungunya, as well as Anopheles mosquitos capable of transmitting malaria. Local transmission could only occur if an infected person returns and is bitten by the correct mosquito species in the area. Therefore, it is important to protect yourself and your community from mosquito bites by being proactive and removing mosquito breeding sources around your home. If you feel as though you are experiencing symptoms related to any of these diseases, please contact your health care provider promptly.

Yes, this is true. Aedes aegypti, commonly known as the "Yellow fever mosquito" is a new mosquito in California. It was initially found in Fresno and Merced Counties in 2014. It has continuously spread and for the first time found in Stanislaus County on July 25, 2019 in the City of Modesto. This mosquito is capable of transmitting several tropical disease including Chikungunya, Dengue, and Zika viruses. Although these diseases have not been detected locally, in late 2023 dengue cases were diagnosed in two patients of the cities of Pasadena and Long Beach in Los Angeles County.

Aedes aeypti mosquitoes are urban, container breeding mosquitoes that feed exculsivly on humans. They can be found both inside and outside the home in small containers of water, such as flower pots, pet water bowls, bird baths, and vases. In order to control breeding sites near your property, it is important to regularly clean, cover, or drain all sources of standing water. 

You may have seen social media sources claiming that Stanislaus County is releasing mosquitos into the community. This is not true. There are programs which utilize Sterile Insect Technique (SIT) as part of their mosquito management program, but currently East Side Mosquito Abatement Distract does not include this method. Sterile Insect Technique has been used for a variety of pests across the nation since the 1950s. This method sterilizes male mosquitos by either irradiation, bacteria induction, or gene modification. These sterile male mosquitos are released in large numbers to mate with wild females, thus mated females fail to produce viable offspring. The number of mosquitos in a treated area will eventually decline achieving the desired control. Since male mosquitos do not take blood meals their use in such a strategy has minimal impact on peoples’ quality of life.

The safety of this method of control in California follows a thorough approval process involving federal and state regulatory authorities. East Side Mosquito Abatement District may support such scientific concepts but will only consider the adoption of these technologies after they have received the necessary approvals. The adoption of such technologies by the District will only proceed after publicized announcement and thorough public education campaigns.