Neighborhood evaluates plan to spray moths.

Byline: Scott Maben The Register-Guard

State officials Monday night heard their first reaction from the general public to a proposal to spray a biological insecticide in south Eugene this spring in an effort to eradicate a gypsy moth outbreak.

And what they heard, mostly, was a lot of questions: Will the spray hurt pets? What will it do to garden vegetables? What should we do if we find a gypsy moth on our property?

Much of the discussion in the Crest Drive Elementary School gymnasium centered on the safety of Bacillus thuringiensis kurstaki, or Btk, which the state proposes spraying over 183 acres in the Crest Drive neighborhood.

Dr. Sarah Hendrickson, Lane County's public health officer, assured the crowd of about 40 residents that the insecticide is common and poses virtually no risk to humans.

"The bottom line is Bt spraying doesn't make people sick," Hendrickson said.

In theory, a person with a suppressed immunity who is directly exposed to the insecticide might get sick, but there's no solid evidence that has happened in any of the many communities worldwide where the agent is used to treat moth infestations, she said.

The spray plan was drawn up in response to a cluster of 16 male moths caught in traps near Crest Drive and Courtney Place last summer.

The population sounds small, but it probably was less than 10 percent of the moths in the area, said Kathleen Johnson, supervisor of the state Department of Agriculture's insect pest prevention and management programs.

Sixteen alone are enough to warrant a quick and comprehensive eradication effort, Johnson said. The spray area should be large enough to cover the estimated spread of the caterpillars, which travel farthest as tiny larvae that can float miles on a wind current.

Few of those attending Monday's meeting signaled their opposition to the proposal. And few spoke in support of it. For most, it was a time to get answers.

"How about pets and activities outside, children playing outside," asked Bill Eddie, who lives on Crest Drive. "Or should we evacuate the area?"

Residents will be advised to stay indoors during and for at least 30 minutes after the early-morning aerial spraying, which is expected to last less than an hour on each of three days of application in April and May.

The spray will leave a slight residue on cars, windows and other objects, which residents may hose off, officials said.

Others asked about the size of the outbreak and the reason for the planned spray zone, a square area that encompasses hundreds of homes, Crest school and part of Morse Ranch Park.

Swift and decisive action is needed to prevent the gypsy moth population from exploding into the kind of widespread infestation that plagued the Eugene area and central Lane County 20 years ago, Johnson said.

The state then led a multiyear aerial assault, using the same type of biological insecticide, over hundreds of thousands of acres, both urban and rural. It remains the largest such gypsy moth eradication west of the Rockies.

"We vowed never to let that happen again," Johnson said.

As a caterpillar, the insect is rapacious, stripping leaves from oaks, alders, willows and many ornamental trees and shrubs. In time, the defoliated vegetation will weaken and die. In watersheds, bare and dead trees will rob streams of shade and spoil salmon and trout habitat.

Recreation, tourism, agricultural commodities and wildlife all can suffer from heavy gypsy moth feeding, and outbreaks can prompt quarantines on Christmas trees, nursery stock and other products, Johnson said.

Paula Creekmore said the gypsy moth, well established in the northeastern United States, devastated her family's property when she lived in New Hampshire. After the insect swept through, "it was not five acres of woods, it was five acres of sticks."

Crest Drive resident Karen Pavelec asked how the state's spraying proposal will affect people who have designated their property a "no-spray zone."

"What can you do if you don't want to be sprayed?" Pavelec said.

If people are especially concerned, they could leave the area during spraying, Johnson suggested. But it would not be possible to avoid particular lots within the targeted area, she said.

The brand name of the Btk formulation to be used, Foray 48B, will be sprayed as a fine mist from a helicopter flying low over the neighborhood at first light. Ground application was ruled out as impractical and ineffective in the steep, heavily forested terrain, Johnson said.

A 20-minute video shown to the audience at the start of the meeting briefly discussed several alternative treatments, including the introduction of sterile moths into the mating population, trapping and removing caterpillars tree by tree, and using a natural pathogen that is specific to the gypsy moth but is difficult to use.

Btk is a little less discriminating. It can kill all moths and butterflies in the caterpillar stage and feeding at the time of spraying. But officials said other insects and wildlife as well as pets and humans will not be harmed.

CAPTION(S):

Kenton Sturdevant, whose home is just outside the planned gypsy moth spray area, studies an information board at the public meeting Monday night. Wayne Eastburn / The Register-Guard