Chairman Wilfred Reinhold of the Platform Stop Invasieve Exoten has been fighting for transparency when it comes to the tiger mosquito for years. This year he also submitted a Wob request (Public Access to Government Act) about this. “A tiger mosquito was found in Amstelveen in March of this year. After submitting a Wob request, I was given the name of the company. So I have also submitted such a request and we are waiting for an answer. the company names are now also in the report.”
Two years ago, the Council of State decided that there is no reason to keep the names of the companies where tiger mosquitoes are found secret, because it concerns environmental information. However, the NVWA only discloses the municipality and residential area. They do this for privacy reasons.
Diseases
The mosquito species is native to Southeast Asia and has spread worldwide through international transport in recent years. The tiger mosquito can carry more than 20 different infectious diseases, including Zika, dengue (dengue fever) and chikunhunya, infecting humans and animals. “But the chance that the tiger mosquitoes found in the Netherlands transmit viruses of infectious diseases such as dengue and chikungunya is negligible,” says Judith van Kessel, spokesperson for the NVWA.
She says that surrounding businesses and residents have now been informed about the situation by letter. The NVWA is busy combating the tiger mosquito: “Our inspectors return to a breeding site every three weeks. They will continue to do this until the end of the mosquito season, until mid-October.” The NVWA also ensures that companies comply with the rules to prevent a permanent establishment of the tiger mosquito. To date, no violations have been identified in Assen.
tire company
The tiger mosquitoes were found on June 23, July 5, July 12, July 14 and July 20. The number of mosquitoes found is not stated per date of discovery. At the end of the year, the total number of mosquitoes per location is reported. Last year, sixteen Asian tiger mosquitoes were observed in Assen.
The Asian tiger mosquito has been found in Assen for several years in a row, including at tire company Dikabo. That company does not say whether the mosquito has recently been found with them again. One of the ways the tiger mosquito is spreading is through used car tire importers. The eggs of the mosquito hitch a ride in used car tires. The eggs hatch at their destination.
parliamentary questions
Just before the summer recess, Member of Parliament Tjeerd de Groot of D66 put questions to Minister Carola Schouten of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality about the lack of openness for the third time. Schouten is responsible for the NVWA.
Following previous parliamentary questions, the NVWA has published the number of mosquitoes found on its website since the beginning of this year. “A good development, because the number of mosquitoes caught can say something about the extent of spread and the chance of settlement. But the catch date was not mentioned,” explains Reinold.
Now that has been adjusted again and the number of mosquitoes caught is no longer on the website. At the end of the year, however, it will be announced how many mosquitoes there are in total per municipality. In addition to Assen, tiger mosquitoes were also found this year in Amstelveen, Lelystad, Moerdijk and Sittard-Geleen.
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