Aerial Spraying

Gypsy moths weren't the only ones that got doused during the state's aerial spraying here last Thursday. Children on their way to school did, too, and several parents came to last night's council meeting to let officials know just how much they were angered the episode. "We were very upset that our children got sprayed," said Linda Konell of Powell Avenue. "I think it was unnecessary. I just hope nothing happens 10 years from now. " A school bulletin sent home with children on May 17 informed parents that the state would conduct aerial spraying on the week of May 20 but not between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. The notice also stated that the local fire company would send trucks through the neighborhood alerting homeowners of the spraying.

A group of residents from the Irick Road section complained to the Westampton Township Committee on Tuesday night that state-sponsored aerial spraying for gypsy moths has not been effective. The answers the residents received were not encouraging. They were told, in effect, they would have to battle the moths themselves. Marilyn Rand, mayor of the Burlington County township, told the residents that state officials say that any additional spraying would have to be arranged privately by the residents.

Washington Township Mayor John Robertson said last night that he would challenge in court a proposed ordinance that would give the township council the power to appoint its own choices for department heads if not satisfied with the performance of the mayor's choices after 30 days. According to Township Solicitor Joseph A. Alacqua, the ordinance, approved 4-0 with one abstention when introduced at a council meeting March 20, would contradict the provisions of the Faulkner Act - a state law that defines the responsibilities and powers of the mayor and council - and probably would be struck down in court if challenged.

Monroe Township Council members appointed an architect yesterday to study the location, cost and design for a new town hall. Officials said last night they wanted to move into new quarters that would be larger and more accessible to the town's residents. Municipal operations now operate out of five facilities, including the 58- year-old, three-story town hall on Main Street that houses the administrative offices and council chambers. "I think it is becoming evident that the existing town hall does not efficiently provide services to the public," said Township Administrator James White.

The chairwoman of the Monroe Township Environmental Commission resigned Wednesday night after the township council voted to introduce an ordinance that would allow aerial spraying of the chemical Sevin for control of gypsy moths. Mary Duffy, a commission member since 1983, said the council's decision to let landowners spray Sevin from the air was "political, and contrary to the health and welfare of the people of Monroe Township. I can no longer do my job, and I won't be a scapegoat.

Jail cells awaiting more UDA leaders? Protestants and Catholics swept up the debris from another night's rioting yesterday, each community despairing for the safety of their children and blaming the other side for the trouble in north Belfast. John Reid, secretary of state for Northern Ireland, put on notice the Ulster Defense Association, the biggest outlawed Protestant group, some of whose senior members have been implicated in violence committed by the Red Hand Defenders.

New Jersey officials say gypsy moth caterpillars this year stripped the leaves off thousands of acres of trees - hitting hard in Burlington County, but doing considerably less damage than was expected. Based on aerial surveys, the caterpillars defoliated nearly 340,000 acres statewide, or about 20,000 more acres than last year, when the infestation was the worst it had been in 17 years. But Joe Zoltowski, coordinator of the Department of Agriculture's moth control program, said he had anticipated up to 450,000 acres could be affected as the pest population multiplies.

Gypsy moths weren't the only ones affected Wednesday by the aerial spraying of a bacteriological insecticide intended to make them deadly sick. Three Cheltenham residents protested a surprise visit by low-flying helicopters dispensing Bt - Bacillus thuriengiensis - in the Forest Hills Drive area of Elkins Park. Eleanor Inouye and Dolores Tancredi, Brookside Road residents, and Dr. Robert Fischer of Seminole Avenue told the Cheltenham Board of Commissioners on Wednesday night that they objected to not being told ahead of time what would be sprayed and when.

Last April, Attorney General Edwin Meese III toured the vast coca plant fields of Latin America pledging United States support for local efforts to attack cocaine production at its roots. It was just talk. The Reagan Administration has done virtually nothing to help Latin Americans curb the flow of cocaine to our shores. The truth is that, with ample resources and a strategy of eradication and interdiction, the cocaine industry of Latin America could be brought to its knees. We are losing the war on drugs largely because our Government has not taken the initiative to provide the ammunition or a battle plan for victory.

Four new human cases of West Nile virus have been confirmed in Southeastern Pennsylvania, health officials said yesterday, bringing the season's total in the state to five. What concerns health workers isn't so much the number of cases, which is similar to those in the last few years, but that they are all in Philadelphia or its suburbs. Previously, "these cases have been highly sporadic in nature," said Stephen Ostroff, the director of epidemiology for the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

DALLAS - The last time Dallas used aerial spraying to curb the mosquito population, Lyndon B. Johnson was in the White House, Mission Control in Houston was launching Gemini missions, and encephalitis was blamed for more than a dozen deaths. But for the first time in more than 45 years, the city and county planned Thursday to resume dropping insecticide from the air to combat the nation's worst outbreak of West Nile virus, which has killed 10 people and caused at least 200 others to fall ill. "I cannot have any more deaths on my conscience because we did not take action," Mayor Mike Rawlings said.

Pemberton Township officials took a gamble last year, skipping a recommended pest-control program that would have cost $250,000. Luck smiled on them. A host of gypsy-moth caterpillars stripped leaves from trees in other Burlington County municipalities and on ridges in the northern tip of the state. They defoliated more than 339,000 areas statewide, killing 17,000 acres of mostly hardwood trees. But in Pemberton Township, the damage was minimal. Now, some municipalities are following Pemberton's decision last year as they grapple with severe budget constraints.

Local officials trying to craft lean budgets in a grim economy got a new challenge this week: a Feb. 6 deadline to decide whether to find money to battle gypsy moth caterpillars. In some parts of South Jersey, it's no small matter. The pest last year killed nearly 17,000 acres of trees, decimated blueberry crops and forced residents of wooded Burlington County areas to abandon decks covered with caterpillar excrement for many summer weeks. The state Department of Agriculture supervised aerial spraying of Bacillus thuringiensis, a bacterial agent, over more than 90,000 acres in 78 towns last year to try to minimize destruction.

Four new human cases of West Nile virus have been confirmed in Southeastern Pennsylvania, health officials said yesterday, bringing the season's total in the state to five. What concerns health workers isn't so much the number of cases, which is similar to those in the last few years, but that they are all in Philadelphia or its suburbs. Previously, "these cases have been highly sporadic in nature," said Stephen Ostroff, the director of epidemiology for the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

New Jersey officials say gypsy moth caterpillars this year stripped the leaves off thousands of acres of trees - hitting hard in Burlington County, but doing considerably less damage than was expected. Based on aerial surveys, the caterpillars defoliated nearly 340,000 acres statewide, or about 20,000 more acres than last year, when the infestation was the worst it had been in 17 years. But Joe Zoltowski, coordinator of the Department of Agriculture's moth control program, said he had anticipated up to 450,000 acres could be affected as the pest population multiplies.

Gypsy moth caterpillars have stripped bare an estimated 1.6 million acres of New Jersey and Pennsylvania trees in the last three months - the worst defoliation in 17 years. As the destructive pests finish their annual feast and move to the next phase of their metamorphosis, officials in both states say recent airplane inspections have revealed staggering damage. The fuzzy caterpillars have turned brown an area the size of Delaware, leaving miles of forest exposed to increased fire risk and government officials arguing whether enough was done to prevent the devastation.

Jail cells awaiting more UDA leaders? Protestants and Catholics swept up the debris from another night's rioting yesterday, each community despairing for the safety of their children and blaming the other side for the trouble in north Belfast. John Reid, secretary of state for Northern Ireland, put on notice the Ulster Defense Association, the biggest outlawed Protestant group, some of whose senior members have been implicated in violence committed by the Red Hand Defenders.

Colombia is beset by a grave crisis. A decades-old civil conflict, now fueled by huge proceeds from drugs, undermines democracy and stability. Profits from illegal narcotics feed the coffers of the guerrillas and paramilitaries responsible for the great majority of human-rights violations. The economy has been dragged down by violence, unemployment, diminished investor confidence and instability. To address these problems, Colombian President Andres Pastrana developed a comprehensive plan for peace and development called "Plan Colombia.

Gypsy moths weren't the only ones that got doused during the state's aerial spraying here last Thursday. Children on their way to school did, too, and several parents came to last night's council meeting to let officials know just how much they were angered the episode. "We were very upset that our children got sprayed," said Linda Konell of Powell Avenue. "I think it was unnecessary. I just hope nothing happens 10 years from now. " A school bulletin sent home with children on May 17 informed parents that the state would conduct aerial spraying on the week of May 20 but not between 7:30 and 8:30 a.m. The notice also stated that the local fire company would send trucks through the neighborhood alerting homeowners of the spraying.

Sometimes it seems as if Karen Schoch is fighting everyone - the state, the local government, even her neighbors. Only the gypsy moths aren't on the list. Since she found out about New Jersey's gypsy moth spraying program in January, Schoch, of Berlin Township, has been fighting to avoid having her McClellan Avenue property sprayed. It hasn't been easy, because she's at odds with most of her neighbors and local officials. She managed to opt out of the spraying program, which began May 1, but she had to take seven of her neighbors with her. That's because the state had to create a buffer zone so that the plane would be sure to miss her property.