Rat problem under control, says NEA chief

Straits Times 10 Jan 10;

There is no let-up in curbing rat infestation and the situation is under control, National Environment Agency (NEA) chief executive officer Andrew Tan said yesterday.

He said this following reports last week about rats in Bedok Reservoir estate. Mr Tan said the NEA works closely with town councils to keep the rat problem under control, and makes sure they engage good pest operators and sustain their efforts to control the number of rat burrows.

He was speaking to the press at the NEA's first Community Day. Its North East Regional Office in Sin Ming Drive was opened to the public for the first time.

He said: 'The town councils are responsible for the cleanliness of the areas...With the town council report, they will know which areas they have to pay greater attention to and I'm confident that they will dedicate more resources and effort to public hygiene.'

Starting this year, a report will be put out every six months on how well town councils are running their HDB housing estates.

With the NEA monitoring the situation, Singapore is relatively cleaner and more hygienic than cities elsewhere, Mr Tan noted.

Also, the NEA can serve town councils with an order to clean up and eradicate a vector problem. Non-compliance can result in a $2,000 fine. Fewer than 30 orders were served on town councils last year and none has been fined.

Pest control experts said the rat infestation situation is not serious. Said Mr Richard Chong, director of System Pest Control Services: 'Rats may move to HDB estates if waste is not properly disposed of but this is not very common. We get more complaints about rats in food centres.'

Mr Teo Ser Luck, mayor of North East District and an MP for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, said: 'In my area, I have received complaints about rats only once or twice so far but this is usually resolved quite quickly.'

Shuli Sudderuddin

NEA sent close to 30 notices to Town Councils last year
Claire Huang, 938LIVE Channel NewsAsia 9 Jan 10;

SINGAPORE: The National Environment Agency (NEA)sent close to 30 notices to Town Councils to get them to clean up their own backyard in 2009.

NEA said Town Councils receive notices when they breach Control of Vectors and Pesticides Act.

Getting rid of pests takes more than a trap but the NEA is determined to tackle the vector problems.

Andrew Tan, chief executive officer, NEA, said: "We had in recent years launched a rat attack programme and that's something we may have to revisit to keep the rat population under control."

The NEA is also working closely with the 16 Town Councils in Singapore.

Mr Tan said: "The Town Councils have the responsibility for the cleanliness of the areas. I think now with the Town Council report, they know which are the areas they have to pay greater attention to.

“This area of public hygiene and public cleanliness is one of them so I'm confident they will now dedicate more attention and resources to this effort."

Mr Tan's comments follows reports of a rat infestation at the Bedok Reservoir housing estate.

On Monday, it was reported that ten rat holes were found in just three months.

Aljunied Town Council which oversees the area said it's working on the problem.

Under the Control of Vectors and Pesticides Act, Town Councils can be fined S$2,000 if they're non-compliant.

Speaking at the inaugural NEA Community Day, Mr Tan pointed out that the public, private and people sectors have a part to play in keeping Singapore clean and pest-free.

He said: "I think so long as we keep up the vigilance, we'll be able to keep the incidence low. As I've mentioned, the community plays a part."

Just last year, NEA organised more than 9,000 environmental activities in constituencies. NEA said such efforts in engaging the community have reaped benefits. One example is the drop in the number of dengue cases from 14,200 in 2005, to 4,500 in 2009.

The number of environmental volunteers in the community have also risen from 5,800 in 2004, to 16,700 in 2009.

Going forward, NEA will focus on public hygiene and food cleanliness.

Mr Tan said: “The level of awareness has increased because of the public outreach efforts and so this year, my focus would be to make sure that public hygiene, food cleanliness, these are some of the areas that I want to give greater focus." - 938LIVE/vm