The number of rats in Kensington is on the rise, with the borough of Kensington and Chelsea experiencing a rise in reports from the public in recent years. Pest control companies in Kensington have reported an average increase of around 17 per cent in the number of call outs to properties to deal with the pests. In the last three years there have been 6458 reports of infestations or sightings of rats in Kensington, which is an increase from 42 per cent to 60 per cent of all pest-related calls. The council’s environmental health department fears that the increase in infestations could result in increased health risks for residents.
The local authority is saying that residents and local businesses are playing a large part for the increase in rats by not recycling and disposing of their rubbish properly. But the council are not in the clear themselves! With all the government cuts to councils in the last few years, there has been a noticeable decrease in the number of street cleaners and refuse collections in some areas.
A spokesperson for Kensington council said: “Rubbish bags that are left at the side of bins or on top of open wheelie bins, instead of inside them, is just encouraging the rats. The more glass, plastics and cardboard we recycle in the containers provided, there will be more space available in our bins for any food waste, allowing lids to close fully and less waste on our streets.”
In today’s modern lifestyle it is all to easy to grab a quick snack at lunch from a coffee shop or small supermarket, then just discard the waste in a nearby bin. Unfortunately more and more of us are doing this, creating more rubbish, but there are fewer cleaners to help clean up the mess that we leave behind. So please think twice about your lunch, because the rats will eat anything you leave behind.
