Introduction
SAVE THE FROGS! opposes the spraying of pesticides to combat mosquitoes in Santa Clara County, California as the project harms humans and wildlife (especially key mosquito predators), preventing a long-term solution to mosquito control.
Pesticides are intended to kill. The pesticide industry has a long history of selling chemicals that are eventually found out to be extremely harmful to humans and wildlife, and with the billions of dollars these companies have at their disposal, they have managed to lobby their way towards legality for chemicals that should be banned, and that in many other countries are banned. Many pesticides that are currently legal have large bodies of scientific information describing the sub-lethal harm they cause. There is no health organization in the world that suggests the inhalation of pesticides or the consumption of pesticides in food or water as part of a healthy lifestyle, and it is extremely evident that spraying pesticides in Santa Clara communities contaminates the air and water and puts humans and wildlife at direct risk of exposure to chemicals intended to kill.
Mosquito-borne illnesses are extremely rare in Santa Clara County and have been rare prior to the commencement of mosquito spraying. If Santa Clara County has noticed an increase in mosquitoes, it is likely due to the significant destruction of wetlands, which serve as homes to frogs, salamanders, bats, birds, fish and other wildlife species that love to eat mosquitoes. If the County wants fewer mosquitoes, it should focus on improving wildlife habitat. This will provide the County with healthy ecosystems that regulate themselves. The County can also put more effort into educating people about how to reduce man-made mosquito habitats such as old tires and pots that hold stagnant water.
You can read our 2022 letter sent to the Santa Clara Board of Supervisors below:
