Chapter 5: Facilities, Supplies, Equipment, and Environmental Health
5.2 Quality of the Outdoor and Indoor Environment
5.2.8 Integrated Pest Management
5.2.8.2: Insect Breeding Hazard
No facility should maintain or permit to be maintained any receptacle or pool, whether natural or artificial, containing water in such condition that insects breeding therein may become a public health issue.
RATIONALE
Collection of water in tin cans, children’s toys, flower pots, rain gutters, discarded tires and other refuse, and natural pools of water can provide breeding sites for mosquitoes. Elimination of mosquito breeding sites is one of the basic environmental control methods.Mosquitoes are responsible for transmitting a variety of diseases. Mosquito-borne viruses such as West Nile virus, eastern equine encephalitis, western equine encephalitis, and St. Louis encephalitis have occurred in the United States and Canada (1). Children can develop allergic reactions to mosquito and fire ant bites and bee and wasp stings.
COMMENTS
Regular surveillance for stinging insect nests is important.TYPE OF FACILITY
Center, Early Head Start, Head Start, Large Family Child Care Home, Small Family Child Care HomeRELATED STANDARDS
3.4.5.2 Insect Repellent and Protection from Vector-Borne Diseases5.2.8.1 Integrated Pest Management
REFERENCES
- Heymann, D. L. 2008. Control of communicable diseases manual. 19th ed. Washington, DC: American Public Health Association.