Prevent a rat infestation
A rat infestation is caused primarily by people tossing rubbish or food on streets or in gardens. Help prevent this problem.
The municipality is working together with housing associations, involved residents and the Haagse Milieu Services (HMS) to combat a rat problem. You can also do a lot to prevent a rat infestation.
Prevent litter
- Do not throw away any waste or food scraps on the street.
- Do not place garbage bags or loose waste next to rubbish containers.
- Place garbage bags at the curb the day your household waste is collected. Put your rubbish out preferably just before it will be collected. Seal the bags well.
Do not feed birds
Do not feed bread or leftover food to birds. Too much food can be bad for their health. Extra food is often left uneaten and this attracts rats.
Old bread
Do you have leftover or stale bread? Do not throw it away outdoors but put it in a bread collection bin. There are more and more bread containers in the city. Look at where the Begin link: bread containers are located, end link. .
Report rat nuisance
You can report rat nuisance to the municipality if you have seen 1 or more rats outdoors. This could be on the street, in a park or in the garden/courtyard of your housing association. You can report it to the municipality using the page Begin link: Report pests and vermin, end link. . Or call the municipality on tel. Begin link: 14070, end link. .
After it receives your complaint, the municipality will investigate the situation. It will look at which measures are needed in your neighbourhood to address the rat problem. These measures can range from changing the plants to cleaning the area. If it appears that these measures are not enough, the municipality will start up a pest control procedure.
Pubic information campaign
The municipality will continue its public information campaign on the consequences of bread and food scraps outdoors. There are different options:
- For adults there are Begin external link: bread lessons(External link), end external link. in partnership with Stichting Aarde-Werk. Are you interested in these bread lessons? Go to Begin external link: milieueducatiedenhaag.nl(External link), end external link. or send an email to Begin link: milieueducatie.po@denhaag.nl, end link. .
- Begin external link: Teaching packages(External link), end external link. have been developed for primary and secondary schools. Are you interested in these teaching packages? Send an email to Begin link: milieueducatie.po@denhaag.nl, end link. .
- The play ‘Broodkapje’ was created for children. It teaches them why bread does not belong on the street and what they can do about it themselves.