1: mayor eric adams’ office is seeking a “director of rodent mitigation” – or rat tsar – to fight the big apple’s “real enemy”. this position requires “a 24/7 job requiring stamina and stagecraft” for city residents with a “swashbuckling attitude, crafty humour and general aura of badassery”. responsibilities include developing rat mitigation strategies, managing projects and policy initiatives across city agencies, and leading from the front with hands-on extermination techniques.
2: rat sightings have skyrocketed in recent years, with complaints to the city’s customer service number up 67% from 2019. there are an estimated two million rats crawling through the city’s streets and subways, or about one for every four new yorkers. the job search has been ongoing since october 2021 and the chosen candidate could be paid up to $170,000 (â£139,000).
3: a new report, based on 2021 american housing survey data, may vindicate the city somewhat. the survey puts new york city in third place for the most rodent sightings in large us metro regions. ahead of the city that never sleeps in the ratty ratings is boston and philadelphia. the city has taken various measures to control the rodent population, such as installing street-wide storage bins, changing when new yorkers leave their rubbish out and setting rules for vermin-proof heavy-duty bin bags. the rat tsar position is the latest development in the city’s “war on rats”.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-63837306?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=KARANGA
