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Willows resident and district appointee outlines mosquito and vector-control operations serving Willows
Summary
Vince Holvik, Willows appointee to the Glenn County Mosquito and Vector Control Board, described surveillance and control methods, fogging schedules, sentinel chicken testing and the district’s staffing and coverage area.
At the Feb. 25 Willows City Council meeting, resident and Glenn County Mosquito and Vector Control Board appointee Vince (Vince Holvik) presented a public comment briefing on the district’s operations and surveillance work in and around Willows.
Holvik said the local district (he called it the Willows District) was formed by voter approval in 1962, began operating in 1963, covers roughly five square miles including Willows city limits and is governed by a five-member board. He described the district’s two employees, manager Luke Niblec (manager since 2018; with the district since 2005) and assistant manager Derek Nunes (with the district since 2007), and noted the larger Valley-wide Mosquito Abatement District covers roughly 420 square miles and contracts with the local district for some services.
Holvik described surveillance methods: 14 light traps are used to monitor species and abundance; trap contents are identified weekly; only female mosquitoes bite; the district operates six sentinel chickens tested biweekly by the California Department of Public Health for antibodies to West Nile virus and encephalitis; UC Davis receives certain surveillance trap samples for virus testing. He said fogging typically runs May through October (Willows: Mondays and Thursdays; rest of county weekly) and that environmental and weather constraints (wind, inversions, proximity to waterways and honeybee-risk crops) determine when spraying occurs. He said Glenn County had one human West Nile case in 2024 and that the district audits foggers annually for droplet size and adjusts chemical rotations to prevent tolerance.
Council members thanked Holvik for the presentation and noted the district will provide more public information and handouts on its website ahead of the busy season.
Holvik invited questions; councilors asked about aircraft spraying (he said he was not aware of Butte County using planes for blanket aerial spraying) and about chemical safety (he said state-regulated adulticides and larvicides are used and the district reports chemicals to the state).
