Apparently, the city has a rat problem.
Apparently, the city doesn’t have a rat problem.
Apparently, I’m confused.
That was my reaction after leaving the last council meeting I covered in 2014. I was in council chambers when all the talk was about rats and how they had apparently increased their numbers in the city.
At least that’s what NPA Coun. Elizabeth Ball was hearing from citizens. So was her NPA colleague George Affleck. Both of them suggested the city’s fledgling green waste bin program and scaled-back garbage pick-up had something to do with a sudden bump in the rat population.
So the two councillors proposed weekly garbage pick-up be resumed and food scraps be picked up twice per week in the summer. Then they found out it was going to cost millions of dollars, that more trucks would be needed and that rats weren’t the problem they seem to be, according to senior staff.
“There are some local issues that come along from time to time but overall, across the city, we’ve seen no significant increase in the frequency of rats,” city manager Penny Ballem told council.
During the debate, Ballem made a reference to a memo that general manager of engineering services Peter Judd circulated in October regarding rats. I obtained a copy of the memo and here are some facts he presented:
• Call volumes to 311 from people complaining about rats average three per month.
• The majority of calls, especially the repeat calls, come from areas where there are food establishments.
• A review of the 311 call locations was cross-referenced with the implementation of the city’s green bin program and “there was no obvious correlation between the two.”
• Vancouver Coastal Health, which investigates when rats are seen in commercial establishments or in and around their dumpsters, has not seen an increase in their call volume regarding the rodents.
“They indicated there is no epidemic of rats in the City of Vancouver,” wrote Judd, adding that the city’s permits and licensing department also checked to see if building demolitions caused a surge in rats. The department found no correlation but Judd acknowledged that rats do scatter when a building is knocked down.
To tackle that problem, Judd said a new bylaw drafted through the permits and licensing department calls for any building slated for demolition to have pest control confirm it is rat free.
Ball’s response to the memo: “I certainly don’t live in a neighbourhood of uncontrolled garbage or too many composters, but we have seen a vast increase in rats. If I go out in my backyard, which is compost-less and is clean as a whistle, and all the fruit is picked up and I can see five rats within a day, I know there’s a problem in my neighbourhood. So I believe that people are telling me this because this is an issue.”
But Vision Vancouver Coun. Andrea Reimer said her research indicates there has been no increase in 311 calls related to rats at any point over the last five years. Which means two things: Either people aren’t calling to report rats or there’s no significant rat problem.
(Note: The Courier was unable to reach any rats for comment.)
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