The Municipality of Escazú will be fumigating and collecting non-traditional waste to prevent the spread of dengue and zika.

The campaign started Friday, July 28 and will tun until August 18, said the Ministry of Health in a statement. The neighborhoods of Los Anonos, El Carmen, San Francisco, Corazón de Jesús, and Bello Horizonte were chosen for the campaign based on Ministry of Health recommendations.

The first step in each neighborhood is a collection of non-traditional wastes such as furniture, clothes, containers, and any other junk you wouldn’t normally put out in the trash.

The Ministry of Health will follow up with fumigation, and finally one last special trash collection will take place to collect household waste such as bottles, containers and other accumulated trash to cut down on the potential for mosquito breeding areas in people’s patios and gardens.

Escazú Mayor Arnoldo Barahona said that, “Statistics show that during this period there are generally outbreaks of various diseases, such as dengue and zika among others. This is why we decided to carry out this campaign, which allows us to keep the county healthy.”

The municipality received a donation from Bayer of chemicals to be used in these fumigations, said the ministry.

In addition, community civic groups are involved with communicating to local residents about the campaign and about preventive measures, as are the staff of companies that make up the Escazú Corporate Social Responsibility Network.