Miami Beach city leaders are at odds with a scheduled aerial spraying of the insecticide Naled over a 1.5-square-mile infection zone.
In a statement Tuesday, Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez said the flights recommended by Florida health officials and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will begin Thursday and continue for a month.
Gimenez said the number of Miami Beach mosquitoes found with Zika increased over the weekend.
The Florida Health Department announced Tuesday six new non-travel related cases of the Zika virus in Miami Beach.
Not everyone is happy about the planned aerial spraying in Miami Beach, including the city’s mayor Philip Levine.
“I am not comfortable with it, but I think it’s important that we listen to the proper scientific and medical authorities and what they recommend,” said Levine.
Miami Beach City Commissioner Mike Grieco is very upset over the announcement and has called for a special meeting Wednesday to cancel the scheduled aerial spraying.
Grieco said the aerial assault on mosquitoes could be a threat to everyone.
“It’s a neurotoxin. We don’t know the risks. It’s been outlawed in Europe since 2012. It’s something that has not been used in Miami, historically,” said Grieco.
According to a spokesperson for Mayor Gimenez, Naled, which is EPA approved, has been used in Miami-Dade County since the 1970’s.
Source: NBC Miami