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Mon, August 24, 2009
By JONATHAN SHER
It won't zap them or spray them with noxious chemicals, but it will repel troublesome teenagers just the same.
So says the North American distributor of a product that emits a high-pitch squeal that for most under age 25 sounds like fingernails on a chalkboard. Older ears typically don't hear a thing.
Soon it will likely come to London, where politicians and bureaucrats hope to use it against graffiti, vandalism and the nightly takeover of some city parks that's left neighbours fearing for their safety.
"It will give youth gangs a headache instead of them giving us a headache," said Coun. Stephen Orser.
The Mosquito -- or, more fully, Mosquito Ultrasonic Teenage Deterrent -- is widely used in Britain and has been controversial because it targets young people.
The Mosquito has also caught on in Western Canada -- its distributor claims it's used by most school boards in British Columbia and Edmonton.
But Mike Gibson, president of Moving Sound Technologies Inc. in Vancouver, says Ontario cities haven't bought his pitch.
"Nobody (in Ontario) believes it works -- that's our biggest hurdle," he said.
Well, not exactly nobody: Orser will ask fellow politicians today to explore its use. He wants the Mosquito in Ed Blake Park north of Huron Street to drive away youth gangs.
The head of security for the city, Dave O'Brien, has been impressed enough by his research to investigate where to locate one on a trial basis, while parks staff are buzzing about how to protect park buildings from damage.
Park use has proved a major success in north Vancouver, according to the civic manager there who oversees its use.
Todd Lamont says the graffiti had become so bad, staff were cleaning up or painting over the mess weekly, spending about 200 hours a year. In the two years since he bought the Mosquito, they've cleaned up only once.
"It very dramatically reduced graffiti and vandalism . . . they've proved their weight in gold," said Lamont, who ordered another two yesterday.
Gibson sells his commercial-sized Mosquito for $1,050, but says he's willing to loan one to the city for 30 days first.
The city already spends between $10,000 and $15,000 a year trying new ways to prevent graffiti, said London's parks manager Scott Stafford.
"It's worth a look," he said.
The emitted frequency can go 30 metres and spreads outward like a flashlight, narrow at first then widening, though both distance and breadth can be shortened by how the Mosquito is set up.
The device can be placed on a timer so it only activates during night hours when there are usually problems, Gibson said.
Jonathan Sher is The Free Press city hall reporter.
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