During the past few weeks, there has been a lot of discussion and a special City Council meeting about aerial pheromone spraying in the Monterey area to combat the Light Brown Apple Moth (LBAM). Yesterday, the Secretary of Food and Agriculture announced his decision to begin the aerial application on September 9. This morning, the Monterey City Council released a statement in response.

The California Department of Food and Agriculture Web site includes information about the statewide Light Brown Apple Moth project, the Monterey area eradication plan, and the chemicals that will be used, CheckMate®OLR-F and Checkmate®LBAM-F. If you have questions, you can call the Department at 1-800-491-1899.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture site has a summary of information about the LBAM. You can find regulatory information about LBAM pheromones and a Lepidopteran Pheromones Fact Sheet at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Web site. The California Department of Pesticide Regulation has brief Product Information Reports on CheckMate®OLR-F and CheckMate®LBAM-F. Another source for information about LBAM impacts and management is the University of California Statewide Integrated Pest Management Program.

In the Library or with a Library card, you can search Library databases for more information about the LBAM and pheromone pest control.