Disney prides itself on creating magical experiences, but one of the more magical feats that they have pulled has to be providing a virtually mosquito-free experience for patrons visiting Disneyworld – even though it’s located on former swampland in hot, humid Florida

They pulled this impressive feat off by incorporating mosquito control and prevention directly into the design of the park. In fact, Walt Disney, himself, hired Major General William “Joe” Patterson, the former governor of the Panama Canal Zone, to employ his knowledge prevention when engineering and designing the theme park.

As many of us know, mosquitoes breed by laying eggs in stagnant water. That’s why you won’t find any standing water throughout the park; it’s all designed to be continuously flowing, making it an unattractive breeding ground. While not 100% effective, it provided a precipitous drop-off in the number of mosquitoes, allowing patrons to enjoy the park without worrying about the nuisance of mosquitoes.

Disney’s effectiveness in controlling mosquitoes offers a valuable argument in support of incorporating the expert testimony and knowledge of mosquito control professionals on local planning commissions.

Local planning commissions are supposed to make smart, informed planning and land-use decisions that align with a community’s master plan. Although planning commissions do an excellent job executing their duties, they could improve on this established standard of excellence by incorporating the knowledge and expertise of mosquito control professionals.

This kind of foresight and smart planning ultimately saves taxpayers money and improves the public health by making controlling mosquitoes more manageable. We can drastically reduce the number of natural mosquito breeding habitats through employing a holistic, synergistic approach that fully embraces the tools and levers of local government.

If you agree and would like to take action, we invite you to contract your local City Council and State Representatives. By working together today, we can implement the smart land-use standards of tomorrow.