Public/Private Property

The City has an on-going program of treating standing water on public property with mosquito dunks where it is not feasible to drain the water. The City cannot treat standing water on private property, with the exception of abandoned property with due notice provided to the legal owners. If you are concerned about a location having the potential for mosquito breeding please call Streets and Drainage Department at (830) 221-4030 between 7:00 am and 4:00 pm Monday – Friday or use our Report a Problem form. Please have the street address available when you call.

The City of New Braunfels  Does Not Spray for Mosquitoes

There are many reasons why, but the most important ones are the questions about the effectiveness of the insecticide and the negative impact on the environment. Because of these concerns the City promotes the importance of preventing mosquitoes at their source and wearing insect repellent to prevent bites. Spraying chemicals in New Braunfels would not rid the city of mosquitoes. To kill a mosquito, the chemical has to actually make contact with the insect.  This may work for a swarm of mosquitoes in a wide-open space with no wind.  However, driving a truck down a neighborhood street to spray will do little to kill mosquitoes hiding in grass, bushes, trees and backyards.Not only is spraying costly and ineffective, there may be serious environmental impacts caused by the chemicals. Spraying also does nothing to affect the larva present in standing water.  The spraying of chemicals also has the potential of contaminating our waterways, killing the beneficial fish and organisms that feed on mosquito larva, adding harmful volatile organic chemicals to the atmosphere and providing a potential inhalation or ingestion hazard to residents who are in affected areas shortly after spraying occurs. Residents themselves are the best defense against mosquito infestation.