The following article appeared in the April 19 edition of the Guelph Mercury. Ward 2 has three termites zones of activity.
Guelph’s termite control officer has received approval to use zinc borate to kill termites.
Tim Myles said Friday that a federal experimental permit application for the chemical, submitted to the Pest Management Regulatory Agency last year, had just been approved.
“We screened a lot of chemicals,” Myles said. “Among those that were inorganic, it was the best.”
Zinc borate is environmentally safe, proved to be an effective chemical in the lab and already registered in Canada as a wood preservative, he said.
“This would be a new use,” Myles said about using zinc borate on termites.
The chemical would be one of many strategies used to eradicate termites he has seen since he was hired by the city in 2007. Myles outlines these in a report prepared for Monday’s community, development and environmental services committee meeting.
Some of the practices included monitoring and trapping, nematode treatments, yardwood cleanup and removal, and stump and tree removal.
“We’ve made measurable progress,” he said.
Termites were newly detected in two areas peripheral to existing red zones. One is a group of five properties to the west of Emma and Pine streets and the other is east of Dufferin and Powell streets. However, the report states that the newly detected areas were found as a result of improved detection.
In fact, Myles said that between 2008 and 2009, there has been a 30 per cent decline in termites in the city.
There are three termite zones in Guelph that encompass nearly 900 properties on 50 city blocks. The largest and original site flanks Woolwich Street, just north of downtown.
The red zone is bordered by the Speed River, Eramosa Road, Exhibition Street and Emma Street.
A smaller infestation was discovered in 2000 in the neighbourhood southwest of Victoria and Woodlawn Road East.
A third area was discovered in 2007 near Emma and Pine streets, near Guelph General Hospital.
Since 2007, two part-time summer technicians have also been assisting with termite control. Two will be hired again this year to start work in the first week of May.
With about 3,000 traps to work with, Myles said, technicians are trapping and extracting the termites to treat and release them.
Traps are expected to be refurbished, missing traps will be replaced, and traps will be removed or reduced in some reclassified zones from May to June.