Ward 1 Alderman Matthew McLaughlin reported to the Board of Alderman at their regular meeting last week that he has been receiving calls from constituents with rodent sightings earlier than usual this year.

By Amy Swain

The Rodent Issues Committee is making serious efforts, and getting serious results in eliminating the rats in Somerville. This year, rodent sightings have decreased by 40%. Although rats continue to be a problem, the committee has plans to continue the trend in 2015.

At the most recent committee meeting, members addressed each individual complaint of rodent activity they have received. Goran Smiljic, Superintendent of Inspectional Services, detailed the actions that have been taken in each instance.

The most common action taken has been to bait the area. The policy of the city is not to bait an area unless a member of Inspection Services spots a rodent personally. Rodents don’t always show themselves when inspectors examine a given area. This means that citizens must be as involved as government. Trashcan lids seem to have made a large difference, especially in residential buildings.

Ward 2 Alderman Maryann M. Heuston and Ward 1 Alderman Matthew McLaughlin, chairperson and vice chairperson of the Rodent Issues Committee respectively, are very interested in making sure Inspectional Services are doing what they can to educate residents on prevention. The Rodent Population Control Program currently tickets occupants with rodent problems. With the ticket, they send a photo of the rodent that has been spotted.

Is this enough? Heuston and McLaughlin don’t think so. They pointed out that the picture and citation are often sent to the landlord of a building, not to the occupants. The committee thinks more should be done to assist residents. To that end, informational door knockers will be returning to service soon.

Other steps being taken include contact with the MBTA regarding their prevention program. As it has always been assumed that the transit company would cover their own ground, identifying any gap areas is necessary, as subway stations are notorious rat hangouts. To highlight other hot spots, Inspectional Services have constructed a map displaying each complaint location. This allows focus on problem areas, and reveals whether one area is increasing or decreasing, so they are able act accordingly. At the most recent meeting, plans were made to reassess the map in consideration of the decrease in rodent sightings.

McLaughlin noted at the meeting that he has been receiving rodent complaint calls since January this year, an unusually early start for the issue. This has prompted an early start on detection and extermination that will hopefully result in fewer sightings this summer.