Aerial spraying for moth outbreak begins in Toronto this week. Here's where it's happening
The City of Toronto will start aerial spraying this week to combat what they call "outbreak levels" of moths.
The LDD moth, formerly known as the European Gypsy Moth, feeds on trees, which the city says results in severe leaf loss. This makes the trees weak and vulnerable to diseases and extreme weather conditions.
Officials said the first aerial spraying took place on Tuesday in the following areas:
- Beaches-East York
- Scarborough Southwest
- Scarborough-Agincourt
- Scarborough North
- Scarborough-Guildwood
- Scarborough-Rouge Park
The second round of spraying will take place 10 days later and come to a close by mid-June.
The spraying involves three twin-engine helicopters flying between 15 and 30 metres above the tree canopy and releasing insecticides, which take effect once the LDD moth caterpillars feed on the treated leaves.
The city says the insecticides – Foray 48B, otherwise known as Btk – are a natural bacteria typically found in soil that has been approved by Health Canada. The spray is not toxic to birds, humans, adult moths, butterflies, bees and other insects.
Here are the areas of Toronto that will be sprayed in the coming weeks:
- York Centre, Don Valley West
- Don Valley East, Don Valley North
- Willowdale, Beaches-East York
- Scarborough Southwest
- Scarborough Centre
- Scarborough-Agincourt
- Scarborough North
- Scarborough-Guildwood
- Scarborough-Rouge Park
A different pesticide will be sprayed over High Park to avoid potentially impacting other moth and butterfly species.
The upcoming dates dedicated to spraying will only be confirmed 48 hours in advance and can be cancelled based on weather conditions.
The spraying will take place between 5 a.m. and 8:30 a.m. Residents can access updates on the City's spray schedule, here along with a map.
The city says there are no “special precautions” for people who live in spray zones. However, those looking to avoid exposure are recommended to stay indoors.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Large numbers of New York City police officers begin entering Columbia University campus
Large numbers of New York City police officers began entering the Columbia University late Tuesday as dozens of pro-Palestinian protesters remained on the campus.
Poilievre kicked out of Commons after calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'wacko'
Testy exchanges between the prime minister and his chief opponent ended with the Opposition leader and one of his MPs being ejected from the House of Commons on Tuesday -- and the rest of Conservative caucus walking out of the chamber in protest.
Baby, grandparents among 4 people killed in wrong-way police chase on Ontario's Hwy. 401
A police chase which started with a liquor store robbery in Bowmanville Monday night ended in tragedy some 20 minutes later when a suspect fleeing police entered Highway 401 in the wrong direction and caused a pileup which killed an infant and the child's grandparents, as well as the suspect, investigators say.
Freeland leaves capital gains tax change out of coming budget implementation bill, here's why
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
Sword-wielding man attacks passersby in London, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring 4 others
A man wielding a sword attacked members of the public and police officers in a northeast London suburb Tuesday, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring four other people, British authorities said.
Man dies after suffering cardiac arrest while waiting in ER, widow wants investigation
When an ambulance took David Lippert to the hospital in March of 2023, the 68-year-old Kitchener, Ont., executive was hoping to find out why he was feeling weak and unable to walk. Some 24 hours later, he was found unresponsive in the ER.
CSE says it shared information on Chinese hacking of parliamentarians in 2022
While several MPs and senators say they were only recently made aware of China-backed hackers targeting them, the Communications Security Establishment, one of Canada's intelligence agencies, says it shared information about the incident with parliamentary officials in June of 2022.
WATCH Arnold Schwarzenegger spotted filming in Elora, Ont.
The name of the project has not been officially released although it’s widely believed to be the Netflix series FUBAR.
Eviction for landlord's use was legitimate, despite owners' partial move, B.C. court rules
A B.C. judge has upheld the eviction of a family from their North Vancouver townhouse, finding that the landlords did not take an unreasonable amount of time to move into the home after the tenants vacated it.