Myths and DDT….again!

You probably didn’t see this, but the city of Hamilton (Ontario) had a new councilman suggest they consider using DDT for bed bug control.  He got ripped mightily, by both enviromentalists and pest controllers.  The environmentalists claimed damage to the environment.  The pest controller claimed DDT doesn’t kill bed bugs anymore.  They are wrong.  After 70 years of use in South Africa they still can’t find evidence of those environmental damages, and the stuff still works.

For an extraordinarily balanced in-depth discussion of the current situation of DDT in malaria control in Africa see http://allafrica.com/stories/201307180429.html.

For the uninformed view from the news in Hamilton see http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilton/news/ddt-repeal-would-do-nothing-to-combat-bed-bugs-experts-say-1.2842047