• OtterTail's Mosquito Control Experience
• OtterTail's Licensing and Insurance
• OtterTail's Laboratory and Surveillance Services
• OtterTail's Larval Surveillance and Control Services
• OtterTail's Adult Control Services
• OtterTail's Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Technological Services
• OtterTail's Reports
• OtterTail's Customer Satisfaction and Quality of Service
• OtterTail's Local Experience and Coordination

OtterTail has aquatic entomologists, mosquito control specialists, certified pesticide applicators, wetland scientists, GIS specialists and wildlife biologists to meet all of your program needs. Our staff focuses on unique and innovative ways to protect human health, while still protecting the environment and reducing project costs through the use of the following services:

OtterTail has extensive experience in the planning, coordination, and implementation of mosquito surveillance and control programs. We have conducted WNV surveillance and mosquito control efforts for all sizes of projects - everything from large county-wide programs to small home owner's associations. Please give us a call for more information and to get a price quote for the services that would best suit your needs.

Key staff that would be assigned to your project have specialized expertise in every area required for these services (e.g., IPM program development, planning, GIS and field mapping, mosquito identification, surveillance and control services, health and safety, public outreach), and will provide you with an integrated and effective program.

We are familiar with the types of issues and concerns encountered while conducting these programs, and will work with you to help avoid them. These experiences will allow OtterTail to provide you with high quality development, planning and management of a comprehensive program that has been tailored to meet your goals and objectives.

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OtterTail is licensed as a commercial pesticide applicator by the Colorado Department of Agriculture (CDA) and complies with all state and federal laws. As standard protocol, we have been regularly inspected at our office by the CDA, assuring your agency that we comply with all of their requirements (e.g., proper pesticide storage, proper maintenance and documentation of equipment and personnel, detailed check of our pesticide application records, etc.). All vehicles used in the service of our mosquito contracts carry valid insurance and comply with CDA regulations (for example, all vehicles display our company’s name and information).

Our key mosquito-related personnel are all experienced team members and include certified CDA Qualified Supervisors (QS’s). Our QS’s fall under the “Commercial Pesticide Applicator License” of OtterTail and all seasonal technicians fall under the supervision of the QS’s. We require all personnel involved in any contract (including seasonal technicians) to carry a valid driver’s license.

OtterTail also maintains Comprehensive General Liability insurance, Automobile Liability insurance, Workers Compensation/Employers Liability insurance and Professional Liability insurance to protect you from any potential liabilities that may arise from the project.

OTTERTAIL'S LABORATORY AND SURVEILLANCE SERVICES

OtterTail operates an in-house surveillance lab that allows us to perform thousands of adult and larval identifications each season. We own state-of-the-art laboratory and identification equipment and up-to-date mosquito key books to ensure that all of our identifications are performed accurately. The identification of mosquito species can be an essential component to any properly managed mosquito surveillance and control program. Our primary mosquito identification experts have several years of adult and larval mosquito species identification experience.

OtterTail has extensive experience in setting up and managing mosquito surveillance systems that will effectively achieve your specific goals. We routinely set and collect dozens of OtterTail-owned mosquito light and gravid traps each week during the mosquito season, as well as process and submit hundreds of mosquito samples for arboviral testing.

OtterTail realizes that a properly managed larval surveillance and control program is the key to any effective mosquito control program. The foundation of a solid surveillance program should be comprised of an experienced and well-educated field crew. All of our permanent staff members have experience conducting mosquito larval surveillance work and many of our non-fulltime/seasonal mosquito technicians have more than one season with us, assuring our clients that we have the depth and breadth needed for solid program implementation. Our seasonal field technicians meet the Colorado Department of Agriculture’s training standards by attending our field and classroom training programs. In addition to the initial training programs, OtterTail’s Qualified Supervisors also provide regular training updates throughout each season for all of our field crews.

OtterTail applies pesticides at the recommended application rates for each product it uses. For example, 5 pounds (or greater depending upon habitat conditions) per acre is our standard application rate for our Bti granule larvicide. We also perform a large number of quality control post-checks each season to ensure that our control treatments are effective. OtterTail owns all the equipment (power backpack spreaders, hand held GPS units, etc.) and has the manpower needed to provide you with a comprehensive and effective larval surveillance and control program at a great price.

Not only does OtterTail have the experienced staff and necessary equipment needed, we can also utilize our Breeding Site Management Program (BSMP) to ensure that your larval control program will be effectively managed, tracked and maintained. The BSMP is our standard method of site organization and tracking for the larval breeding sites. This method of site organization has proven to be a highly reliable, efficient, and “user friendly” system.

Key Components of OtterTail’s Breeding Site Management Program (BSMP) Alpha-numeric grid system of the project area starts the linking process Gridded into 1-mile aerial photo section cards Section cards tied to specialized field forms Field forms tied to electronic database Why is the BSMP valuable? Designed and developed over several years Effectively manages data gathering and tracking effort Focuses/guides the field technicians (what to collect, where to collect, and when to collect it) which ensures sites are not missed and are treated on a timely basis (the key to any larval program) QA/QC: Establishes an ability to track the effectiveness of the field technicians Linked aerial photo section cards guide the technicians to the sites and ensures there is no confusion on which site is linked to the field forms Provides easy tracking of when technicians should revisit a site Database enables effective tracking, reporting, and analysis of the data Effective analysis enables improvements to the program

OTTERTAIL'S ADULT CONTROL SERVICES

OtterTail conducts routine, large-scale adulticiding programs in-house, owns its own adulticiding equipment (truck mounted and hand held ULV machines, backpack misters, etc.) and has staff thoroughly trained and experienced in its use. Having been through Colorado’s WNV epidemic of 2003, we have proven experience mobilizing quickly to provide spraying when the need arises.

OtterTail staff has extensive experience with adulticiding. For example, our senior mosquito specialist has been responsible for overseeing and performing mosquito pesticide spray-truck operations for several years throughout his career and our staff has conducted literally hundreds of hours of ULV truck-mounted spraying. OtterTail staff has also conducted numerous detailed research studies on the effects and success rates of truck-mounted spraying.



This combination of extensive "behind the wheel" spraying experience and research of spray success gives you the assurance that any spray events will be carried out expertly. OtterTail also has a pool of other companies we can subcontract to for large-scale emergency situations (such as aerial adulticiding).

We are also excited to announce that OtterTail’s entire fleet of truck mounted ULV units is now equipped with state-of-the-art variable flow and GPS technologies. These latest technologies allow for several instantaneous, automated and accurate reports of each spray event including:

Application Reports - provides the miles, ounces and acres sprayed along with the average speed of application Chemical ID and Flow Rate - reports the type of chemical applied and it’s flow rate Vehicle and Driver ID - allows reporting of activities by vehicle or driver Max and Average Speeds - reports the average and maximum speeds of the vehicle during applications Start/Stop Times - reports the location and time a vehicle and ULV started and stopped during applications ArcGIS Integration - The data can also be viewed in ArcGIS software systems Variable Flow Control - allows for speed compensated variable flow control of ULV functions during applications





OtterTail is proud to be leading the way among Colorado’s mosquito control contractors by equipping its entire truck mounted ULV fleet with this innovative adult mosquito control equipment. These latest modern technologies will ensure that you are receiving proper, safe and effective adult mosquito control applications during each and every spray event.

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OTTERTAIL'S GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM (GIS) AND TECHNOLOGICAL RESOURCES

OtterTail uses state-of-the-art software and hardware to implement our mapping efforts in-house. The majority of our employees have been trained to conduct GIS wetland aerial photo digital mapping and subsequently have extensive experience digitizing wet areas on high resolution aerial photos. By having experienced staff members and the latest GIS technologies in-house, OtterTail can provide you with quality mapping and GIS products in a timely manner.



Along with our GIS resources, OtterTail also has a high tech server-based supported network with high speed internet, faxes, scanners, printers, and computer workstations. OtterTail uses non-proprietary electronic databases and spreadsheets to track all of our mosquito surveillance and control operations. This allows us to keep detailed site information, track and schedule site visits based on differing variables, and produce weekly, monthly, and annual reports in a quick and efficient manner. Using commonly accessible software also allows us to provide you with your own data in an easily manipulative form for your own records.

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OTTERTAIL'S REPORTS

OtterTail routinely provides its clients with on-going status reports specifically tailored for their projects including: weekly surveillance trap reports, larviciding activity reports, telephone call log reports, and monthly and annual summary reports.

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OTTERTAIL'S CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND QUALITY OF SERVICE

OtterTail takes pride in providing our clients with the highest service and products possible. We are a company that is highly flexible to our clients’ needs and are constantly striving to continually improve each of our projects based upon your specific goals. OtterTail also makes each client a priority by having highly accessible project managers and senior level staff members available to respond to your needs at a moment’s notice.

We also realize that when it comes to mosquito control, we have many more customers to satisfy than simply your organization’s staff members. We often have thousands of residents to please as well. We strive to provide the best possible services by having a highly trained and knowledgeable field crew and office staff available to respond to each resident’s issues and concerns.

OtterTail also provides mosquito related information on this website and offers local and toll-free telephone hotline numbers that allow residents to report any mosquito related issues that they might have.

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OTTERTAIL’S LOCAL EXPERIENCE AND COORDINATION

OtterTail has extensive mosquito management experience in Colorado. We have conducted or are conducting WNV surveillance and/or control efforts for:

Boulder County, CO Eagle County, CO Jefferson County, CO Weld County, CO Town of Erie, CO Lowry Redevelopment Authority Paonia Mosquito Control District Various Golf Courses

City of Boulder, CO City of Centennial, CO City of Federal Heights, CO City of Fort Morgan, CO City of Lakewood, CO City of Greenwood Village, CO Regional Transportation District (RTD) Various Home Owner's Associations

As part of these projects, OtterTail has had ongoing contact and coordination with various County Health Departments, the Colorado Department of Health and Environment (CDPHE) and the Centers for Disease and Control (CDC) over the last several seasons. While conducting complete mosquito management programs we have attended numerous meetings to help ensure that the most effective mosquito surveillance and control programs possible are being used to help minimize the threat of West Nile Virus (WNV) in the region.

Part of our coordination efforts have included the processing of adult mosquito collections from various projects and submitting them to CDPHE for arboviral testing and for those results to be included in the local, county and statewide WNV surveillance systems. We often engage in weekly discussions and meetings with individual project members and agencies during the mosquito season regarding sample submittals, area WNV infection rates, mosquito population trends and other mosquito surveillance and control related issues.



OtterTail’s past multi-agency coordination efforts ensure that your organization will continue to work together with local and regional agencies to reach the common mosquito control goals of your organization and the region.

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