By Wendy Anders

From 7:00 am to 3:00 pm today and tomorrow everyone is asked to bring old tires, electronic waste, plastics, aluminum waste, glass, and tetra-brik packages for disposal at the Jacó Gollo.

The activity is part of an ongoing community effort to eliminate mosquito breeding areas and to reduce the transmission of mosquito-borne diseases.

The Jacó-Garabito area of Costa Rica’s Central Pacific Coast is a locus of Zika infections, with almost 90 of the country’s 127 cases detected there.

Local residents are urged to keep their houses, yards, and neighborhoods free of standing water, which includes disposing of trash, checking potted plants, cleaning gutters and getting rid of anything where rainwater collects.

Women who are pregnant or are thinking of getting pregnant should take special precautions at all times to avoid mosquito bites. Dengue, Chikungunya and Zika viruses are all spread by the Aedes aegypti mosquito which thrives in hot climates, and some of these diseases have been linked to problems during pregnancy.

The Ministry of Health recommends people wear long sleeved shirts and long pants to minimize mosquito bites. They also encourage sexually active people to use condoms if and when having sex while pregnant to prevent the spread of Zika through sexual contact.

Quepos will hold a trash drop-off next week, on Wednesday, July 6 and Thursday, July 7 at Coopeservidores. Followed by Parrita the week after that (July 13 and 14).

Holcim Costa Rica, Geocycle and Gollo will ensure proper disposal and/or recycling of the items, stated the Ministry of Health in a press statement.