1st Phase of Fruit Fly Battle Called a Success
The first phase of a state program to eradicate the Oriental fruit fly in the Carson area ended Wednesday as Los Angeles County agriculture officials announced that no more of the crop-threatening pests have been found in the nine-square-mile infestation area.
“It’s going very good to this point,” said Bill Edwards, chief deputy of the county’s agriculture commission.
Edwards said the second in three phases of spraying, none of which involve aerial spraying, will begin in two weeks.
The eradication effort was prompted by the discovery of two flies. One male fruit fly was found July 25 near the 300 block of West Fiat Street in a trap in a peach tree. The second was found last week in an apricot tree, half a mile away in the 21000 block of South Main Street.
On Saturday, work crews from the California Department of Food and Agriculture began spraying an area that includes parts of Carson, Los Angeles and unincorporated county land. A formula consisting of a sex lure and pesticide was sprayed on utility poles and trees to destroy any remaining flies.
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