The Food and Environmental Hygiene Department (FEHD) concluded the first round of this year's anti-rodent operations in designated target areas in all districts on June 24. The operations effectively enhanced the rodent prevention and control work at the district level. During the operations, the FEHD strengthened rodent control work at problematic spots such as rear lanes, refuse collection points, markets, hawker bazaars, cooked food markets and peripheral areas of construction sites. The FEHD placed poisonous bait at 11 019 locations, placed 34 948 traps and plugged 547 rat holes, with 1 060 dead rodents collected and 1 024 rodents caught in traps. An increase of 10.8 per cent of the total number of rodents collected and caught with the last round of the operations was recorded.

     An FEHD spokesman said, "The FEHD launched the eight-week anti-rodent operations in designated target areas on May 2, with multi-pronged strategies including improving environmental hygiene and stepping up rodent disinfestation and enforcement actions to carry out targeted rodent prevention and control work in the districts. The FEHD also conducted a trial by including an enhanced version of the anti-rodent operations in designated target areas in Central and Western, Southern, Tsuen Wan, Tai Po, Wong Tai Sin and Kowloon City Districts to expand the scope of rodent control, so as to cover more rodent blackspots, including those in public markets and municipal services buildings, hawker bazaars and rear lanes adjacent to food premises, and to conduct large-scale and targeted anti-rodent operations. FEHD staff also enhanced street cleaning services and cleaning of public markets and hawker bazaars in the target areas, including sweeping and washing of streets and rear lanes, and clearing of refuse and waste on the streets, in public markets and at hawker bazaars so as to keep the environment clean."

     The FEHD also stepped up public education and publicity, and arranged 234 health promotion and publicity activities for building management companies of private buildings, persons-in-charge of food premises and market and hawker stall operators to provide information and technical advice on rodent prevention and control.

     "In addition, the FEHD stepped up inspections of markets, hawker bazaars, cooked food markets and food premises. Enforcement actions especially against premises causing poor environmental hygiene conditions, food preparation and scullery at rear lanes, and improper storage of articles and illegal dumping of refuse were strengthened. During the eight-week operations, the FEHD conducted 20 757 inspections and issued 2 718 health advisories, 2 159 verbal warnings, one warning letter and 833 fixed penalty notices, and took out 58 prosecutions."

     The spokesman said that to optimise the effectiveness of the rodent prevention and control work, the second phase of the territory-wide anti-rodent campaign starts today (July 4), and will last for 10 weeks to strengthen the collaboration of departments and raise the public awareness of rodent prevention. He called on all sectors of the community to continue to participate in the campaign and eliminate the three fundamental survival conditions of rodents in their daily life, namely food, harbourage and passages, i.e. the elimination of the food sources and hiding places of rodents as well as blockage of their dispersal routes, so as to work together to combat the rodent problem.

Ends/Monday, July 4, 2022
Issued at HKT 15:00

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