Medford Updates Rodent Ordinance To Fight Rat Surge

MEDFORD, MA — In an effort to curb an explosion of rats across Medford last year, city and health officials worked to update the rodent control ordinance. The revisions include new requirements for all construction or demolition projects, dumpster permit holders, dining establishments, residential properties and street openings.

Now, any person or company seeking a permit to do work that involves removing a portion of roadway, or work that involves demolition on public or private property, will be required to submit an Integrated Pest Management Plan that details rodent prevention measures both before and during the proposed project.

City-sponsored projects will also be required to have IPM plans on file.

Medford also continues to promote its Clean Up, Seal Up campaign, launched last fall to raise awareness about curbing rodent activity.

"We know that rodent activity is a big concern for many residents, and we want to assure the community that we are actively taking steps to address sightings and, more importantly, to be assertive in prevention measures," Board of Health Director MaryAnn O'Connor said. "Unfortunately, this is not an uncommon issue for many communities, but in Medford we have a strong program that we continue to make even stronger, such as these latest changes to the City’s ordinance."

Health officials said eliminating rodents' access to food, shelter, and water sources is essential in rodent prevention and mitigation. The Clean Up, Seal Up campaign provides resources for residential properties and for businesses. Encouraged actions include:

• Dispose of garbage properly; barrels that are compromised should be replaced, and make sure all trash is stored in barrels with tight-fitting lids.
• Trim trees and shrubs and remove overgrowth.
• Avoid feeding wildlife.
• Clean pet waste frequently.
• Avoid having standing water on your property; remove standing rainwater and do not keep pools open and accessible.
• Keep parks, building foundations, alleyways and streets clear of all dropped or discarded food scraps.

"There are many important steps residents and businesses can take to prevent rodent activity as well as address known rodent activity on their property or in a particular neighborhood," Sanitarian Sophie Antoine said. "For example, food, water, and shelter are attractive to rodents. Focusing on eliminating their food and water sources can reduce the chance of them staying in our neighborhoods. In order to properly address a rodent issue, we must take a community/neighborhood approach. The city can spend time baiting a neighborhood but if the food and water sources have not been eliminated, the baiting is useless as the rats will not eat the bait but rather the food that is readily available to them."

City Roles and Responsibilities

After prevention steps have been taken, if you still notice rodent activity in your neighborhood, you can report it to the Board of Health for follow up. If necessary, the City will install bait boxes in sewers, however, as a reminder, baiting will not be effective if prevention strategies are not followed on private property.

"An incredibly important piece of this work is for all of us – residents and businesses included – to be vigilant about things that can provide harbor for rodents, like leaving food and water sources available on your property, improperly stored trash, and grass and weed overgrowth. Our Clean Up, Seal Up campaign is designed to help address these issues and we want to continue to work with residents and businesses to educate and to address rodent activity citywide," O’Connor added.

Additional resources, materials, and tips are available at www.medford.org/rodent-prevention to support property owners and renters in becoming more knowledgeable on preventing rodents and rats.