Residents living on an estate plagued by rats have blamed the council for deliberately not mowing the grass.
People living on the Old Barn estate in Newport, near St Julians, claimed poor waste management and the piling of rubbish near communal bins has added to the problem.
Residents claim the problem has been getting worse over 18 months and they have now taken to social media to share pictures of the rats in the hope the local authorities will take action.
You can read more about the issues with litter on the Old Barn estate here.
Resident and long-time campaigner Mike Enea said “serious questions must be asked” regarding the impact of Newport City Council’s ‘No Mow May’ initiative. This was designed to encourage people to help bees, butterflies and other wildlife by letting flowers, lawns and bushes grow.
“The scheme is all well and good for roundabouts and when we’re talking about the side of busy main roads,” he said. “But this is in the middle of an estate outside people’s homes. It’s irresponsible [not to mow the grass]. It’s caused the estate to become a breeding ground for rats. It’s disgusting.”
“We now have a situation where these rats are quite often getting into people’s homes,” he added.
Newport council said it did not believe "that leaving the grass uncut would have led to rats moving into an area".
Resident Sue Godwin Williams claimed Newport City Homes, which looks after the estate, removed many of the bins and said there are now problems with litter and fly-tipping.
Sonia Furzland, from Newport City Homes, said: “We’re sorry about the issues residents are experiencing with rats in the Old Barn area. Working in partnership with Newport City Council, we have upgraded and doubled existing recycling facilities in the affected area over recent months and currently carry out five site visits a week to tackle fly-tipping and excess waste on our land.
"We will continue to work with partners and residents to help us address the ongoing challenge of fly-tipping in the area.”
A spokeswoman for Newport City Council said: “Newport City Council’s support for Plantlife’s No Mow May campaign has been very positively received by residents and others. The campaign encouraged individuals, councils and stakeholders to help bees, butterflies and other wildlife by letting wild flowers grow on lawns and green spaces throughout May instead of mowing them.
“The council pledged its support in recognition of our status as a Bee Friendly City, and on our duty to enhance nature and take actions that help counter the impact of climate change. Our regular mowing schedule began again this month. It is not believed that leaving the grass uncut would have led to rats moving into an area. It is more likely that they were already there and the hot weather has encouraged them into the open.”
