Discarded food being left in alleyways has prompted Liverpool City Council to warn residents that “rats love rubbish”.
Every household in the Kensington Field area will be issued with a leaflet highlighting the links between rats and waste food, after there have been several incidents of rubbish being left in alleyways.
Local councillor Nick Small said: “People who act in this anti-social manner should be in no doubt that they will pay the penalty. Leaving waste, especially food, out is an invitation for the area to become rat-infested.”
In the past month 18 fixed penalties have been issued in this area and a further 19 residents have been warned that action may be taken against them for not disposing rubbish correctly.
Student housing company, Kexgill Liverpool, has 60 houses in Kensington Fields, which has become a popular residential area for students. The manager, Kenny Houghton, told JMU Journalism: “The waste is a problem, but it’s not students, it’s families who are throwing bags over the wall. With keeping bin bags in the yard on Wednesday, rats can still get to it and live off the waste food.
“We have told Liverpool City Council to relay all the flags in the back alleys of people’s houses. There are that many burrows where rats are nesting, it’s unbelievable.
“Cutbacks to the council means they’re not doing anything about the root of the problem. We are the only student accommodation in Kensington that has done something about the rat problem.”
Kexgill Liverpool has spent funds on rat poison and rat cages in attempt to manage the infestation.
Mr Houghton added: “On Adelaide Road we had seven tubs of rat poison from the outside wall to the alley way and every tub had been eaten. On Edinburgh Road there is a derelict house full of rats the size of cats.”
Environmental health officers have been assessing the situation in order to make improvements in the area.
The manager of Kexgill Liverpool told JMU Journalism: “There needs to be a better storage facility put in place. For a four-bedroom student house there needs to be at least two wheelie bins. There’s also a problem with the shortage of bins in the area because kids have been robbing them and putting them on fire.”
Councillor Small said: “We are providing all households with the necessary containers for their waste and we will be reminding them what they should and should not be doing when they leave their waste and recycling materials out.”
It has been claimed that bin men have been refusing to empty wheelie bins in the alley way at the rear of the houses in the area, due to the poor working conditions.
LJMU student, Tasha Mc Donnell of Saxony Road, Kensington, told JMU Journalism: “Although I am aware of the issue the council has, I feel they are partly to blame as they do not empty the bins properly on a regular basis, leaving residents no option but to leave rubbish elsewhere.”
Next week local students will partake in a litter pick in the estate, including the front cellar area of the terraced houses.