As rat populations explode in Canadian cities like Ottawa and Vancouver, provinces could start looking to Alberta — which says it’s been rat-free for seven decades — for inspiration.
Driving the news: The province’s invasive species council is putting $110,000 in federal money towards “Rat on Rats,” its newest anti-rat awareness campaign. Albertans are being targeted with billboards and outreach materials reminding them to report any rat sightings.
- Rats first arrived on Canada’s east coast by European ships in the 1770s. They gradually started moving west and are thought to have reached Alberta around 1950.
- The province responded swiftly to its new visitors, immediately designating them as pests, launching an aggressive eradication drive, and creating a Rat Control Zone.
Alberta’s Rat Control Program today focuses mainly on reported rat sightings. While the majority of calls are false alarms — last year there were just 23 confirmed rats out of 458 reports — major infestations do happen. One in Calgary last November stirred headlines.
Why it matters: Rats are invasive pests that can spread infectious diseases and cost millions in annual economic damages, primarily by spoiling food and crops. This makes the ~$360,000 Alberta spends each year to ward off the rotten rodents a small price to pay.—QH