There are rats all over Cape Town‚ what am I gonna do?

18 May 2016 - 17:20 By Tmg Digital

Rats and cockroaches account for over a third of complaints to the City of Cape Town health department.Another third are about unhygienic conditions such as illegal dumping and waste spills. “The statistics are not entirely surprising‚ since it’s no secret that we have a problem with illegal dumping in this city‚ which is one of the key complaints listed as part of unhygienic conditions. That in turn promotes the presence of pests like rodents and cockroaches‚” said Siyabulela Mamkeli‚ mayoral committee member for health.Motherwell brothers use art to stop illegal dump siteRubbish dump paintings lead to fame for Port Elizabeth pair. “The lesson learnt from these statistics is that communities need to do more to keep the environment clean‚ which will in turn reduce the risk of pests and disease."A total of 7‚616 service requests were received by health officials in the nine months between July 2015 and March 2016. Almost 2‚700 related to rats and cockroaches‚ and 2‚400 to unhygienic conditions.Only 79 complaints related to food hygiene and 76 to smoking‚ and Mamkeli said this “could be indicative of a high level of compliance with legislation‚ but it could also be indicative of a lack of understanding about environmental health and the channels available to log complaints”.He added: “I think in part it also has to do with how we view health. For many people‚ health relates to illnesses and visits to the clinic or hospital. That’s a more reactionary approach.“Environmental health is more proactive. It is everything from good personal hygiene to limit the spread of germs to effective waste disposal and food storage practices which in turn reduce the risk of pathogens that can cause illness.“It is also about identifying and dealing with noise pollution‚ which can have an impact on your physical health through sleep deprivation and so forth.”Complaints or concerns about environmental health hazards can be logged with the city call centre on 0860-103-089.-TMG Digital/The Times..

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