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Greater LA County Vector Control District briefs Cerritos council on dengue, West Nile and sterile-insect pilot
Summary
District trustees and staff told the Cerritos City Council the region faces dengue and West Nile activity, outlined surveillance and response programs, and described a sterile-insect (SIT) pilot that used irradiated male mosquitoes to reduce local Aedes aegypti populations in two neighborhoods.
Representatives from the Greater Los Angeles County Vector Control District briefed the City Council June 26 on vector-control services, disease risks, and an ongoing sterile-insect technique (SIT) pilot.
Mark Bowman, who represents Cerritos on the district board of trustees, introduced Caroline Gongora, the district’s public information coordinator, who described the agency’s operations funded by property and special assessment taxes (cited at $18.90 per single-family home annually in the presentation). Gongora said the district conducts surveillance, inspections, and treatments year-round; in 2024 the district performed more than 5,000 inspections in the service area, including residential and public sources.
Gongora highlighted that local transmission of dengue occurred in Los Angeles County in 2023–24 and that the agency recorded 14 county cases with three within the district in 2024. She reiterated ongoing West Nile virus activity and the district’s integrated vector-management approach (surveillance, control, and education).
The district also described a pilot SIT program in which X‑rays sterilize male mosquitoes; releases in two San Fernando Valley neighborhoods were associated with a measurable reduction in mosquito populations and potentially reduced disease risk by producing nonviable eggs when sterile males mate with wild females. The presenter described SIT as a nonchemical, eco-friendly tool the district will continue to evaluate.
Council members thanked the district for the briefing and asked for continued outreach and communication; the district noted its partnership with city communications, parks and rec, and public-health partners for education and response during mosquito season.
