Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Vermin and Disposers

The papers have recently been reporting on how New Yorkers are getting fed up with rats, cockroaches and other vermin. In Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn the failure to pick up garbage has resulted in a rodent feast right by PS 32. In Stuy Town, cockroaches are such a problem that at least one resident has decided to move ASAP.

One major reason for this vector problem is that there is a readily available food source: the organic refuse thrown out everyday by New Yorkers. The City of Philadelphia realized this public health danger and decided to mandate grinders in order to lessen the amount of material being thrown into dumpsters that would attract rats and insects. We are confident that the City Council will grasp this positive aspect of disposers and pass Intro 133, which will conduct a cost/benefit analysis prior to any legalization of these devices.