Southold Town Supervisor Scott Russell’s phone has been ringing often lately with residents suggesting the town take a more serious look at the 4-poster program, used on Shelter Island to help mitigate tick-borne illnesses.
To that end, Russell has proposed a new town committee for the specific purpose of studying all possible methods that can be employed to reduce and or eradicate the tick population.
“There are programs currently implemented such as the 4-poster program,” he said. “We need to look at those types of programs and evaluate the effectiveness and costs.”
The 4-poster device is a feeding station designed to control ticks on white-tailed deer. As the deer eat at the station, rollers with tickicide are brushed on the deer. While the program has been deemed effective on Shelter Island, some have said in past months thatit might prove cost-prohibitive in Southold due to the town’s size.
Russell discussed the new committee at today’s town board work session; it would not be a standing committee with a fixed start and end date. Instead, the committee will be comprised of five to seven individuals, each with specific background in the environment such as tick eradication, tick-born illnesses, and other related issues, with one member from each field.
