Mosquito eradication : the story of killing "Campto"

279 Pages·2013·14.856 MB·English

by  Brian H Kay, Richard C Russell

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About the editors
Brian Kay AM is a Group Leader at QIMR’s Mosquito Control Laboratory, which is designated E
by the World Health Organization as an offi cial global Collaborating Centre for Environmental d
Management for Vector Control. Prof. Kay is renowned for his arbovirus and mosquito research, it
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and has published 285 papers. He is highly sought after for international and national
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conferences, expert panels and consultancies. In 1999 he was awarded the DI Ivanovsky s
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Centenary Medallion for his achievements, in 2005 he was appointed a Member of the
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Order of Australia for his scientifi c contributions, and in 2006 he was elected as a Fellow .

of the prestigious Australian Academy of Science. K
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Richard Russell is Professor of Medical Entomology at The University of Sydney, and founding y
Director of the Department of Medical Entomology at Westmead Hospital. He has worked as a a
Medical Entomologist, in public health and tropical medicine, for more than 40 years, and has n
a broad experience with insects and other arthropods of medical importance. His specialties d

are mosquito biology, mosquito-borne disease and mosquito control. He has published more R
than 200 scientifi c papers on mosquitoes and related topics, and four monographs, including .

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as co-author of the 12-volume The Culicidae of the Australasian Region.
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Mosquito Eradication Cover Final.indd 1 7/08/13 11:12 AM
Mosquito
Eradication
The Story of Killing Campto
Editors: Brian H. Kay and Richard C. Russell
ii Mosquito Eradication
© Brian H. Kay and Richard C. Russell 2013
All rights reserved. Except under the conditions described in the Australian Copyright Act 1968 and
subsequent amendments, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, duplicating
or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner. Contact CSIRO PUBLISHING for
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National Library of Australia Cataloguing-in-Publication entry
Mosquito eradication: the story of killing “Campto” /
edited by Brian H Kay and Richard C Russell.
9781486300570 (paperback)
9781486300587 (epdf)
9781486300594 (epub)
Includes bibliographical references.
Mosquitoes – Control – New Zealand.
Mosquitoes as carriers of disease – New Zealand.
Ross River virus.
Communicable diseases – New Zealand – Prevention.
Kay, Brian H. (Brian Herbert), editor.
Russell, Richard Charles, editor.
614.43230993
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Front cover: photo by Stephen L. Doggett
Back cover: map by Mark Disbury
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Contents
Preface ix
Dedication xi
Abbreviations xiii
List of contributors xv
Acknowledgements xix
Locations in New Zealand mentioned in this book xxi
1 How it was before: historical perspectives on receptivity and risk 1
Brian Kay, JR Gardner and Gene Browne
The mosquito and its compatibility 1
Possible virus impact 3
Vertebrate hosts 4
Invasive species in NZ 5
Early surveillance and international obligations 8
What does it take for a pest to establish? A lot of luck helps! 10
The Kay Review 1997 12
2 Strategy development and refinement at Hawke’s Bay 19
Steve Garner, Noel Watson, Henry Dowler, Darryl McGinn, David Sullivan and Brian Kay
In the beginning 20
Getting started 21
The Mosquito Response Centre fights back – the Bti chronicles 23
Eradication planning – the evolution of a plan 24
Characteristics of methoprene products 25
S-methoprene registration in NZ 26
Egg survival in relation to treatment regimen 27
Choice of S-methoprene 29
Eradication begins 30
3 Solid government legislation and support as a key to success 35
Sally Gilbert, Andrew Forsyth, Ian Gear, David Sullivan and David Yard
The role of government 35
The role of the Ministry of Health 38
The MoH’s immediate response 39
Moving to eradication 41
Coordinated Incident Management System (CIMS) 43
Transfer from the MoH to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry 45
MAF stewardship 47
Structural Arrangements: Evolution from Local to Regional to National Eradication 48
The roles of other government agencies 50
Liaison with local government 51
iv Mosquito Eradication
The Biosecurity Act 1993 52
The Resource Management Act 1991 54
The Health Act 1956 57
The Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act 1996 57
The International Health Regulations 2005 57
Funding 58
The role of the Health Funding Authority 60
Programme transfer to the MAF 61
4 Listening to the experts – the advice that drove the national
programme 65
Sally Gilbert, Andrew Forsyth, Ian Gear, David Sullivan and David Yard
The Southern Saltmarsh Mosquito Technical Advisory Group 65
Transferring the TAG to the MAF 73
Other expert advice 74
Community Liaison Group 75
Cost–benefit analysis 76
Health risk assessment 78
5 Who knows how to do broad-scale aerial control of mosquitoes? 81
Darryl McGinn and David Sullivan
Into the storm 81
Napier Mosquito Response Centre (MRC) 83
First strike 85
Scaling up and overcoming habitat influences 87
Getting XR-G to NZ 89
Broad-scale treatment refinement 91
6 Coming to grips with ProLink XR-G at Hawke’s Bay 97
Brian Kay, Michael Brown, Gene Browne and Barbara Thomson
Background 97
S-methoprene trials 98
The nightmare begins – detecting S-methoprene in water samples 100
Do aerial applications of granules reach the ground? 102
Characteristics of the XR-G product 103
Was there enough XR-G released to kill mosquitoes? 106
Environmental variables 107
Acknowledgements 110
7 Pathways of entry and mosquito dispersal 111
Andrew McFadden, Graham Mackereth, Ruud Kleinpaste, Robert Sanson,
Nigel Beebe, Bryn Gradwell, Mark Bullians and Ruth Frampton
Introduction 111
Pathways for entry 112
Pathways for spread within NZ 115
Understanding human-mediated methods of spread 119
Mitigating risk of pathway spread 122
Understanding spread through molecular analysis 125
The sequence of translocations 129
Modelling spread 131
Acknowledgements 135
Contents v
8 Camp Kaipara – a mosquito or programme death camp? 137
Bryn Gradwell, Monica Singe, Shaun Maclaren, Steve Crarer, Jessica Taylor and Mark Disbury
Kaipara – the initial find 137
Habitat reassessment 138
Turning the mountain into a molehill 138
Painting by helicopter 139
MoH response 140
Delimiting the Kaipara 141
NZ BioSecure Report to the MoH 141
Resource Management Act 1991 142
Establishing the team 143
Kaipara eradication programme operational planning 144
Training requirements 145
Quality management 147
Additional training/education undertaken 148
Training outcomes 148
Team organisation 148
Establishing the base 150
Field supervision 151
Radio communications/repeater station 152
Daily briefings and debriefings 152
Reporting 153
Equipment and vehicles 153
Equipment and vehicle maintenance 153
Wash point design and implementation 154
Landowner liaison 154
Troubleshooting complaints 155
Weather patterns 155
Kaipara treatment plan 155
Sentinel monitoring 157
Killing Campto 158
Campto raises its ugly head 158
The death knell 159
Acknowledgements 160
9 Developing detection and surveillance 163
Graham Mackereth, Monica Singe, Mark Disbury, Sally Gilbert, Noel Watson,
Craig Williams, Rachel Cane and Scott Ritchie
This is not New Zealand! 163
Napier infested 165
Surveillance before 1999 165
The early days at Napier 166
The rise of entomology laboratory services 167
The rise of a national database 168
Surveillance at Napier: is eradication working? 168
National saltmarsh surveillance: a paradigm shift 169
Public health unit surveillance success 170
Growing concerns 170
Review of national surveillance 2002 171
Towards a national surveillance programme 172
The National Saltmarsh Mosquito Surveillance Programme 173
vi Mosquito Eradication
NSP surveillance based on prior probabilities 173
NSP habitat identification 174
NSP habitat classification 175
NSP measures of surveillance 175
Surveillance operations 176
NSP results 177
Adult surveillance 177
Surveillance in the end game: are they really gone? 177
10 The National Saltmarsh Mosquito Surveillance Programme 181
Monica Singe, Mark Disbury and Darryl McGinn
Background 181
NSP operations: NZ BioSecure 2005–2010 181
Success – Coromandel Campto detection 185
Laboratory identification 188
A history of NSP surveillance outcomes 189
2007 surveillance 190
2008 surveillance 193
2009 surveillance 195
2010 surveillance 195
Acknowledgements 196
11 Maintaining environmental integrity in invasion areas 197
Helen Gear, Travis R. Glare and Maureen O’Callaghan
Introduction 197
Environments suitable for Campto 198
Areas in NZ infested with Campto 201
Environmental effects of the control agents 205
Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti) 205
Methoprene 208
Anticipated effect on NZ flora and fauna 210
Habitat management and steps taken to minimise the effect of the treatment programme 210
So were there any lasting effects of the eradication programme? 211
12 Communications and cultural issues 215
JR Gardner, Val Aldridge and Bryn Gradwell
Introduction 215
Communications – just another health crisis 216
Setting the scene 221
The strategic communications response 222
The Kaipara Communications Plan, a case study 224
Communications timeline 229
Acknowledgements 244
13 Reflections on a successful eradication programme 245
Richard Russell, Henry Dowler, JR Gardner, Sally Gilbert and Matthew Stone
Being prepared 245
Having good people 246
Having good leadership 247
Using established systems and processes 247
Contents vii
Accessing expert advice 247
Having international help 247
Developing rigorous analyses 248
Having legislation that works 248
Planning effectively 248
Managing risk 249
Communicating effectively 249
Maintaining effective field operations 251
Maintaining confidence 252
Satisfying the funders 252
Using intelligence to drive responses 252
Providing an ongoing capability 253
Preparing for the future 253
NZ vulnerability 254
NZ susceptibility 254
NZ’s capacity to respond 255
Conclusion 255
Acknowledgements 255
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Preface
‘There is no such thing as partial success. It is either glorious success or dismal failure.’
(Dr Fred Soper, Pan-American Health Organization and Master Mosquito Eradicator)
In December 1998, residents of Westshore in the rural hinterland of Hawke’s Bay on the
east coast of the North Island of New Zealand (NZ) contacted government health authori-
ties in Napier, an important regional centre with 54 000 people, to report an unusual abun-
dance of day-biting mosquitoes at Westshore near the airport. Hawke’s Bay is noted for its
agriculture and particularly for its red wines.
The Australian southern saltmarsh mosquito, Aedes camptorhynchus (which we will
call Campto), has never been previously recorded in NZ, but is known from its homeland
as a significant pest species and vector of the arboviruses Ross River and Barmah Forest
virus, which cause debilitating illness in humans.
NZ had no equivalent mosquito species and if Campto became further established and
spread within NZ, it would present a serious health risk as well as becoming a nuisance pest
affecting the quality of life of many communities. A case was put to demonstrate that a
‘virgin soil’ outbreak of Ross River virus was likely and such an occurrence, left uncon-
trolled, would necessitate the setting up of clinical and pathology services for arboviruses
and generate the need for routine mosquito control.
The finding of Campto at this site galvanised the Ministry of Health (MoH) and was to
be the genesis of the NZ Mosquito Industry. With no practical experience of saltmarsh
species to call on, the MoH brought in Australian expertise to contribute to the Southern
Saltmarsh Mosquito Technical Advisory Group (TAG). A short-term response programme
using Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis (Bti), a benign microbe originally discovered in
Israeli soil, to suppress breeding in some 650 or so hectares of habitat on the north-west
side of Napier, as well as at a smaller (40 ha) site south of Napier, by aerial and ground
delivery was instituted. A more substantial plan was developed based on using a slow
release formulation of ProLink® XR-G granules, containing S-methoprene (a new age insect
growth regulator) as the treatment agent. Take a deep breath and consider this:
● a country with no experience of mosquito control
● a target species that was an exotic import with no track record in NZ
● a species that had desiccation-resistant eggs that may lay around for months awaiting
inundation by rain or tides, and did not all hatch at the same time
● an eradication plan that was reliant on unpredictable wet events to flush out the
target species
● a treatment formulation that was untried in NZ and Australia, although it had been
through one summer of trials in the USA
● considerable gaps in knowledge of the life history of the target mosquito.
Some would say that it was with a ‘leap of faith’ that the MoH endorsed the eradication
plan and, with government backing, the eradication programme began in 1999. A govern-
ment-funded programme to attack and eliminate the mosquito from the Hawke’s Bay area
was quickly instituted, but, over the next decade, the mosquito was found to have invaded