This past July, residents of the Rambla de Santa Cruz made public videos in which they could see “rat families” climbing the trees, the same ones that go down to the ground at night to feed near the containers, but also the food that some uncivil neighbors leave on public roads. And it is that, as they explain from the Public Services area, since the beginning of the previous decade there has been a reduction in the brown rat or sewer, and an increase in the black rat or arboreal, with a longer appearance, and that breed and take refuge in trees, palm trees or areas of dense vegetation, which, according to the City Council, “makes them more visible to the public.”
Greater control of these rodents, but also of other pests, is the objective that must be achieved by the new pest control service that has been launched this month of September, and that starts with a campaign in the five districts, intensifying the work of rat extermination and disinsection in green or solar areas, which could lead to an increase in rodents and other species.
With an amount of 206,325 euros per year, this service improves considerably, since it represents an 80% increase in investment compared to the previous contract, which dated from 2017. The announced campaign will serve to evaluate the development system of this new service and, At the end, a review of the disinfested and rat-free area will be carried out, to verify its correct development.
The new contract also represents a growth in the spaces to be treated, since it increases the dependencies to almost 300 and the total area, from 170,000 to 266,000 square meters (including the public schools of the municipality).
This service is coordinated by the Public Services area, through the Health and Environmental Sustainability area, and is organized into three different teams, with objectives such as campaigns in public spaces, those in municipal responsibility buildings and, the third, to deal with the different incidents that may occur daily, including the treatment of scuppers, in coordination with Emmasa.
The mayor of Santa Cruz, José Manuel Bermúdez, points out that “the new contract ostensibly improves the effort made by the City Council to develop this service, which will surely bear fruit in the coming months.” To do this, he adds, “the collaboration of citizens is essential, which by following some simple recommendations, such as placing garbage bags in containers or not feeding animals on public roads, can contribute to the collective duty of keeping our capital clean. ”.
For the councilor responsible for Public Services, Carlos Tarife, “the priority of the Government group is to continue advancing in offering quality public services, especially those so sensitive that they have to do with the safety, health and image of the city”.
