In 1985, a new species immigrated into the United States, hitching a ride to Houston on some used tires from Japan: the Asian tiger mosquito, Aedes albopictus. Since then, it has made itself at home in 20 Southern, border, and midwestern states.

This mosquito likes to live near people, in tire dumps, tin cans, flowerpots, birdbaths, or anything else that contains a small amount of water. It is aggressive and feeds on many different hosts. It grows viruses well and spreads them very effectively. In Asia, it is a major vector for dengue (``bonebreak'') fever, a painful but usually nonfatal ailment. In laboratory experiments, it is capable of transmitting all six forms of viral encephalitis that occur in the US. The most worrisome form is Eastern equine encephalitis. This virus is fatal in 80% of its victims and destroys the brain in half of the survivors (Arizona Republic, June 6, 1992).

Although the tiger mosquito is not endangered (and hence entitled to protection), mosquitoes breed in a protected habitat: wetlands.

The definition of a wetland is controversial. A 1989 manual issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and other agencies defined it as any area that was wet for seven continuous days per year and had the soil saturated to within six to 18 inches of the surface. The burden of proof was on the landowner to prove that the land was not a wetland in order to obtain a development permit from the Army Corps. A more restrictive definition has been proposed by the Vice President Quayle's Council on Economic Competitiveness and the Domestic Policy Council's Task Force on Wetlands: the land would have to be covered with water for at least 15 straight days or saturated to the surface for 21 consecutive days during the growing season and would have to meet more stringent requirements concerning the type of vegetation present. It would also place the responsibility on federal agencies to prove that land is a wetland and hence subject to regulation (Issues in Sci and Technol VIII:35-41, Summer, 1992).

Environmentalists oppose the new definition, claiming that ``major wetland destruction'' could easily result. Their concern is for migratory birds and the flora and fauna that thrive in wetlands.

Public health officials have a different concern. Their definition of a functional wetland is a ``place where water stands long enough to produce two successive broods of mosquitoes.''

Officials responsible for protecting the public health, however, are not even listed among the ``interest groups'' opposed to regulatory ``protection'' (agriculture, real estate, construction, and oil and gas production).

Scientists deplore the ``neglect of 600 million patients'' worldwide due to inadequate research for developing drugs against tropical diseases (Science 256:1135, May 22, 1992). They also call for investing greater effort in vaccine development, which has to date been remarkably ineffective against parasitic diseases such as malaria (Science 257:36-38, July 3, 1992). But ``attack against the mosquito vector has always offered the only hope for eradication of the parasite'' (ibid.)

Attack against the vector means draining swamps and using pesticides. Both methods are increasingly constrained.

At the Tenth Annual Meeting of DDP, held in Costa Mesa, CA, July 11, 1992, William Hazeltine, Ph.D., described the problems he faced as manager of the Butte County Mosquito Abatement District. In California, the best pesticides have become unavailable. A chemical previously used to treat pastures is now allowed by the State of California only for use against household pests. But pasture mosquitoes and jack rabbits are an important part of the endemic encephalitis virus life cycle. An alternative compound, pyrethrin, derived from the Chrysanthemum flower, costs $300 per pound and is in such short supply that it may be impossible even to treat all the densely populated urban areas that are at risk.

Concern about the carcinogenic potential of minuscule residual concentrations of pesticides is only part of the problem, according to Hazeltine. The pesticide also has to have been proved effective to the regulators' satisfaction. That is why the use of diesel oil is not permitted (even though no one doubts its efficacy), unless some approved ingredient is added to it.

Hazeltine does not believe that the nation's fish, shellfish, migratory birds, aquifers, shorelines, and recreational opportunities face dire threats due to efforts to control vectors of human disease. He cites numbers compiled by the Soil Conservation Service of the USDA, that showed the average loss of privately owned wetlands in the Pacific States to be about 8,000 acres per year between 1982 and 1987. ``This does not square with the catastrophic loss numbers being used to achieve a political objective.''

Hazeltine did not comment on DDT, believing that battle was irretrievably lost. Dr. Edward Teller asked whether it would be an exaggeration to say that the ban on DDT had cost 10 to 20 million human lives.

``I believe that to be an underestimate,'' Hazeltine replied.

Hazeltine's article, ``The Health Risks of Wetlands: the Western US Perspective,'' is reprinted in a recently published book, Rational Readings on Environmental Concerns, edited by Jay H. Lehr. The book is available for $49.95 from the publisher, Van Nostrand Reinhold, 7625 Empire Drive, Florence, KY 41042. Other authors include Dixy Lee Ray, Petr Beckmann, Bernard Cohen, Thomas Jukes, Elizabeth Whelan, and Jane Orient.

Dr. Hazeltine's articles are also available from DDP (see enclosed order form).

October 3-5, 1992. The American Civil Defense Association (TACDA) meets in Huntsville, Alabama. Speakers include Dr. Edward Teller; Dr. Conrad Chester and Carsten Haaland of Oak Ridge National Laboratory; Nancy Greene; and Gen. Daniel Graham of High Frontier. For information, call 904-964-5397.

October 15-17, 1992. The Association of American Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS) meets in Seattle, Washington. Banquet speaker will be Gov. Dixy Lee Ray, Ph.D., on the topic of Environmental Issues and Their Cost. For information, call 800-635-1196.

Mobile civil defense shelters will be displayed this fall at the Nevada and Utah State Fairs. Call 602-325-2680 if you would like to help.

Did you miss our Tenth Annual Meeting in Costa Mesa? Audiotapes are available─just send in the enclosed form.