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Miami Beach Doctor Files Lawsuit To Stop Mosquito Spraying

In September 2016, Miami Beach residents protested against aerial spraying of the pesticide Naled.
Kate Stein
/
The Florida Channel
Leon County Judge John Cooper on June 30, 2022, in a screen grab from The Florida Channel.

A Miami Beach doctor who last year helped spearhead angry opposition to using the pesticide naled has filed an emergency request in federal court to stop Miami-Dade County from conducting aerial spraying in its seasonal battle against native marsh mosquitoes.

On Monday, the county completed its second flight this season, dosing a large swath of the coast, from the Rickenbacker Causeway south to Florida City, and inland around Kendall and Homestead.

Dr. Michael Hall and attorney Cindy Mattson argued in a complaint filed last week that federally sanctioned plans to combat mosquitoes using naled pose a health risk and that the county repeatedly failed to give residents enough notice to prepare or take the proper precautions. The complaint says the county failed to follow guidelines established by the Environmental Protection Agency and asks the court to suspend the pesticide’s use until it can hear evidence about its safety.

Read the rest of this story from our news partner, the Miami Herald.

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Jenny Staletovich has been a journalist working in Florida for nearly 20 years.