Cemeteries focus on mosquito fight
People visit loved ones at cemeteries on Memorial Day weekend, bringing flowers for the built-in vases and adding some water. Standing water. You know what that means.
Mosquitoes.
But not this year. The Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito Vector and Control District has spent $12,500 to get local cemeteries to use crystals that turn the water into gel, preventing mosquitoes from breeding.
Water crystals are super-absorbent polymers that look like white grains when dry. When water is added, the crystals' chemical structure traps it until they've expanded to resemble gel ice cubes. As the flowers use the water, the crystals go back to grain form.
There are an estimated 247,000 in-ground vases in more than 37 cemeteries in Sacramento and Yolo counties – plenty of places for mosquitoes to breed and spread West Nile virus, district spokeswoman Luz Rodriguez said.
The crystals pick up dirt and don't look as nice as water, cemetery officials say, and people are picky when it comes to honoring grave sites. Ray Young, the district manager of Fair Oaks Cemetery, said he has some die-hards who pour out the crystals every time they visit.
"They think it looks icky. That's the term," he said.
The cemetery still promotes the crystals – religiously. Workers post signs to educate visitors and check vases to make sure the crystals are in place every month. If a family doesn't comply, Young said, he calls them and tells them why it is important.
"We don't really want anybody to get sick," he said.
The season for West Nile isn't in full swing yet, and no human cases have been reported in the state so far. Last year, 15 people died and 445 were infected in California, according to the control district.
Thirty cemeteries in Sacramento and Yolo counties are participating in the program, Rodriguez said.