Politics & Government
County Announces Rat Eradication Success
County officials said the Rat Attack program has yielded positive results, and additional neighborhoods have been targeted for rodent eradication efforts.
The results of a rat eradication effort in targeted Baltimore County neighborhoods are in, and county officials are calling the Rat Attack program a success.
"With continuing education and enforcement, we have achieved quantifiable results and positive feedback from treated communities, where residents are reporting a dramatic decline in rodent sightings," County Executive Kevin Kamenetz said in a news release. "People increasingly realize that human behavior is the biggest variable in successfully eliminating this health hazard from our neighborhoods and they are stepping up to make important changes like using rodent-resistant trash cans, cleaning up pet waste and addressing potential burrowing locations."
Since April 2012, the Rat Attack program has treated 2,100 homes in neighborhoods with known rat infestations based on complaints and inspection reports, according to the release. The cost of the program is $750,000 for a five-year period, with $8 being spent on each residential property.
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The Riverview community in Lansdowne and St. Helena in Dundalk will be next neighborhoods scheduled for treatment starting on the weeks of Feb. 11 and Feb. 25, respectively. The eradication process involves licensed professionals injecting approved powdered rodenticide into identified rodent burrows.
The county is also conducting trash sweeps to eliminate nutrition sources for rodents in the treated areas, the release states.
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Rat Infestation Facts From the County
A single breeding pair of rats can, under ideal circumstances, produce as many as 80 offspring in one year. The life expectancy of a Norway Rat in the wild is approximately one year. The size of a colony or infestation is directly proportionate to the available food supply.
Beyond extermination practices, the industry-accepted solution to rodent control is for residents to eliminate food sources and burrowing opportunities. Residents are advised to:
- handle and store their trash properly by using and maintaining rodent resistant trash containers
- raise sheds and firewood piles off the ground
- remove junk and debris piles
- regularly pick up and properly dispose of pet waste
- clean up pet food and birdseed
According to the county, the following neighborhoods have been treated to date, but officials plan to send exterminators back to ensure positive results.
First Councilmanic District
August 2012: Huntsmoor
January 2013: Arbour Manor
Fifth Councilmanic District
August 2012: Ridgeleigh, Hawthorne, Hillendale
October 2012: Knettishall, Loch Raven Village
January 2013: Towson Park and Towson Manor Village
Sixth Councilmanic District
August 2012: Ballard Gardens, Holland Hills
December 2012: Middlesex
Seventh Councilmanic District
April 2012: West Inverness, Stanbrook, Eastfield, and Colgate.
May 2012: Eastwood
June 2102: Berkshire
July 2012: Eastfield, Westfield, Bear Creek, North Point Village, and Norwood/Holabird
September 2012: Sollers Point and Gray Manor
October 2012: Charlesmont, Turner Station and Old Dundalk
November 2012: Logan Village
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