Black Fly Spraying Set For Wednesday In Newtown Area

Provided by the Pennsylvania Department of Environment:

A previous black fly spray in Pennsylvania. Credit: PA DEP

Pennsylvania Department of Environment will be conducting an aerial black fly (biting gnat) larviciding operation along the Neshaminy Creek, Schuylkill River, and Tulpehocken Creek on Wednesday April 16 beginning at approximately 8 a.m. at Wings Field in Montgomery County.

The aerial spraying activity will utilize a helicopter to apply Vectobac 12AS (also known as B.t.i.) into the aforementioned waterways in Bucks, Montgomery, Chester, Berks, and Schuylkill counties. (Philadelphia borders the work being conducted in part of Montgomery County.)

Work will take place in the following areas:

Neshaminy Creek: Between Playwicki Park in Middletown Township and Route 611 Bridge in Doylestown.
Schuylkill River: Between City Avenue bridge in Philadelphia to the Kernsville Lake Dam in Schuylkill County.
Tulpehocken Creek: Between Blue Marsh Lake Dam and the confluence of the Schuylkill River.

The helicopter used for this operation will be a Bell Jet Ranger OH-58 with tail number N655HA and is painted grey with blue and red stripes. The aircraft is operated by Helicopter Applicators of Gettysburg, PA. DEP personnel will be on site at all landing zones managing the operation.

The B.t.i. material is a naturally occurring bacteria (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis) that kills the immature (larval) form of the black fly when they feed on it in the waterways. This application of B.t.i. is not toxic to fish or other aquatic macroinvertebrates found in the treated waterways. The material is only applied to the surface of the water and not sprayed.

This work does NOT involve a helicopter spraying over the entire county. This work is targeted to portions of specifically mentioned waterways. The helicopter will apply B.t.i. to the water at designated areas every few miles along the treated waterways. The application is done by first circling the area to look for people on the ground or obstructions in the air. Then, the helicopter will fly perpendicular to the water flow (whenever possible) and apply the B.t.i. material, which is a brown, viscous liquid with a fish oil odor directly to the water.

For those interested in learning more about the black fly program and prevention strategies, we encourage you to visit the PA DEP’s official website. You can find detailed information here.

To gain a better understanding of the operation and its importance, we recommend watching the informational video provided by the DEP.