Residents of Avola and Blue River will head to the polls this June to decide whether mosquito control services should be expanded across Electoral Area “B” (Thompson Headwaters), following years of discussion and renewed public interest.

The Thompson-Nicola Regional District has scheduled a referendum for June 13, 2026, covering approximately 180 properties in the North Thompson communities. If approved, the service would extend across the entire electoral area—marking a key shift from a previous attempt that focused only on Blue River.

A long road back to a vote

The issue has been under consideration for several years. A 2021 petition asking Blue River residents whether they supported a mosquito control service failed to meet the required threshold, with just 32 per cent of eligible property owners signing on.

“That petition was done in the spring of 2021, and it didn’t pass,” said Colton Davies. “The threshold is 50 per cent for a petition to pass, so it didn’t go through.”

Since then, concerns about mosquito activity have continued to surface in both communities. However, provincial legislation required a five-year waiting period before the question could be brought back to voters.

“Once you hold a public assent process for a service, you can’t go back and ask for that service again until that period happens,” Davies explained. “Now we’ve gotten to that point.”

In early 2026, the regional district conducted public engagement, including community meetings and a survey. Of the 70 respondents, 77 per cent supported holding a new vote on the issue.

“That wasn’t to say they would vote yes or no,” Davies noted. “That was just to say, ‘go do a public assent process about this.’”

What’s different this time?

One of the biggest changes in the current proposal is its broader scope. While the 2021 effort targeted Blue River alone, the 2026 referendum would establish an area-wide service.

“In 2021, this was proposed to be just a local service for Blue River only,” Davies said. “Now we’re talking about a referendum for all of Area B, which mainly affects Avola and Blue River.”

What mosquito control actually means

Davies said there are some common misconceptions about what the service would do. Rather than eliminating mosquitoes entirely, the program is designed to manage populations.

“It’s not a service that’s meant to eradicate mosquitoes—that would be all but impossible,” he said. “This is a mosquito reduction service.”

The program focuses on treating mosquitoes in their early life stages to prevent large-scale population growth later in the season. Similar services are already in place across much of the regional district.

The TNRD currently operates mosquito control programs in seven of its 10 electoral areas and several municipalities, with service levels varying depending on local conditions such as climate and water levels.

Costs lower than before

Another notable change is the projected cost to residents, which is significantly lower than what was proposed five years ago.

For residential properties, the estimated cost is about $9.25 per $100,000 of assessed value. That’s a sharp drop from the 2021 estimate of $130 per $100,000.

Davies said the reduced cost is largely due to the expanded tax base.

“Because this includes all of Electoral Area B, there are more taxpayers contributing,” he said, pointing to large industrial and utility properties—such as rail and energy infrastructure—that would share in the cost.

How to vote

Eligible voters will have multiple options to participate in the referendum:

• General Voting Day: June 13, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Blue River Community Hall
• Advance Voting Day: June 3, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., Avola Schoolhouse
• Mail-in ballots: Available by application starting in early May, with ballots due by 8 p.m. on June 13

“If you can’t make one of those dates—maybe you’re out of town or don’t live locally—we do have mail ballot voting as an option,” Davies said.

For the referendum to pass, a simple majority—50 per cent plus one—of votes cast must be in favour.

If approved, the mosquito control program would be introduced as a new service for Avola and Blue River residents, aimed at bringing mosquito populations down to more tolerable levels during peak seasons.