New Urban Rat Control Program in a Post-Recessionary Environment
NEHA AEC - Las Vegas, NevadaJuly 10, 2014
Keith L. Krinn, RS, MA, DAAS, CPHAPublic Health AdministratorColumbus Public Health
In the 1970’s & ’80’s most American cities had federally-funded rat control programs – including Columbus
When the federal funding dried up in the early1980’s as the responsibility for rodent control was transferred from the United States Public Health Service to the Department of Agriculture, the programs in many cities was discontinued – including Columbus.
Fast forward – 2005-06 Complaints began to grow numerous about rats in the downtown area,
and the student residential areas adjacent to the OSU campus.
The City Council initially approved $275,000 a year for a control program that targeted the downtown and the University District. The Short North area was added in year two connecting the target areas.
A staff of five surveyed 3,670 properties in 2006 and
2007 and found signs of rat activity in 56 locations.
Program workers placed poisoned bait, issued citations for code violations and distributed information that encouraged residents and business owners eliminate harborage and food.
The CDC guidelines recommends taking steps to control rodents when they are found in at least 2 percent of locations. We killed plenty of rats those two years but the rate of infestation was well below 2%.
With its AAA bond rating, The City of Columbus was in pretty good shape, still…
• Columbus had already made deep cuts in city services to close a $114 million or 17 percent shortfall for its 2009 fiscal year
• Voters narrowly approved raising the city income tax by half a percentage point in order to prevent service reductions and restore previous cuts.
• The Rat Control Program was the first thing cut, especially given it never showed infestation rates over 2%.
Second Question
The City Council has approved $150,000 to begin a Rat Control Program for 2014. Where do you begin?
Assessment Results
• 50 Blocks randomly chosen for inspection• 885 of 1,665 parcels visited were inspected• Active rodent signs were observed at 34%
of inspected parcels or units.• Food sources were observed at 69% of
inspected units or parcels.
CPH Rat Control Process
Educating Residents, Assessing the Community for Active Rodent Signs, and
Issuing Recommendation Notices
Assessing Community Progress
Notice Issued if Rat Harborage or Food Sources Observed
Area Clean Without Active Rodent Signs
Violations Resolved, but
Rat Activity Persists
CPH Baiting to Eliminate Rats
City Code Violations Persist on Follow up
Inspection
Rats Observed, However Area
Properly Maintained
Work with Resident to Progressively Correct Issues or File in Court as Last
Resort
Require the Hiring of a Pest Control
Operator
Food Inspections
• The Food Protection Section inspects licensed restaurants and retail stores one to two times per year.
• Refer complaints concerning improper trash storage and rats to the City of Columbus 311 Call Center.
When will CPH issue a notice to an area resident?
• When rats are observed in an area and conditions on a residents property are helping them survive.– For example, a resident may receive a notice if
a large accumulation of bird seed is observed on the ground where rats are active.
– If rats are NOT found in an area, then having bird seed accumulate on the ground wouldn’t be a large concern.
Compost Construction and Maintenance Tips• Avoid placing fats, meat, animal feces, and dairy
items in compost• Only place appropriate food scraps in the middle
of a compost pile, and surround them with leaves or grass.
• Place ¼ - ½ inch of coarse gravel and galvanized hardware cloth underneath of your bin if it is placed directly on the ground.
Bird Feeder Maintenance
• Place a large tray or container underneath of the feeder so seed doesn’t fall on the ground.
• Position feeders ten feet away from any jumping off points
• Place tilted baffles over the feeder when hanging off a tree or below if the feeder is hanging from a post
Third Question
With only two field staff in the Rat Control Program, how do you more than one activity at a time?
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