Rat or wrong?

KNYSNA NEWS - The rat infestation developing in Knysna reported by Knysna-Plett Herald elicited a robust response on social media over the past week. And many theories as to what exactly the source/s of the problem might be and how to tackle it were put to table.

The manager of the shopping centre adjacent to the taxi rank, Michael Georgiou, who first drew our attention to the rat problem, maintains the primary source of the "'plague'' as he puts it, started in the centre of town.

"I believe the problem we face is largely because of the taxi rank," he told KPH last week, "and the fact that it doesn't get cleaned as it should.'' According to Georgiou, a lot of waste at the taxi rank is organic which attracts the rodents.

Knysna Municipality however, said they clean the taxi rank daily. "A pest control and cleaning programme is in place and the area is cleaned on a daily basis," said municipal spokesperson Christopher Bezuidenhout. "However, keeping the area clean is a shared responsibility."

By this he means all commuters and the taxi industry have to help in ensuring the facility is kept clean.

But Knysna Taxi Association's Zolile Jantjies feels the cleaning is done at the wrong time. "They clean in the mornings, and this defeats the purpose because it just becomes dirty during the day again and the rats come again in the evenings," he said.

Bezuidenhout's retort was that, the municipality has morning and afternoon cleaning times on weekdays and five hours on weekends.

"The litter that is accumulated between 17:30 and 08:00 in the morning is dealt with at 08:00 every morning," he said. "The main contributing factor to the litter overnight are vagrants who pick in litter bins and dump litter bags overnight which results in the trash lying around and attracting the rodents."

Bezuidenhout also said the state of the rank is not directly responsible for the rat problem. "Irregular waste disposal methods by local traders including businesses that are operating in and around the taxi rank could be contributing to the problem," he said. "There is a need for a concerted effort by all parties involved to address this issue."

Rats at the taxi rank. Photo: Blake Linder