The Department of Environmental Health said on July 28 a complaint was received about the presence of rodents in the downtown area. A team comprised of five officers was then dispatched to investigate the matter, concentrating their work on Rawson Square, Woods Rogers Wharf, the Straw Market and surrounding areas.
The ministry said during the investigation, it was discovered that the proliferation of the rodents in the downtown areas was mainly the result of food scraps being left around after eating and/or feeding birds etc. It also found that there were a number of rat boroughs or harbourage where rodents were living.
Ron Pinder, Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Health, said three other officers were added to the team to ensure that a complete and detailed inspection was done as it was discovered that a larger area was infested than initially thought. The area was then treated with weather blocks and tracking powder. In total, he said, during the first treatment 150 weather blocks and five pounds of tracking powder were strategically placed to control the rodents.
He said the treatment would continue every Monday, Wednesday and Friday evening until the situation was under control. Live trapping is also being done to control those rodents that are active during the evenings and daytime.
“I wish to make a special appeal to the general public including all who visit, work, shop, and loiter in the downtown area, and I wish to mention the Straw Market in particular to utilise the garbage containers that are placed there for your convenience,” he said. “Whenever food scraps or leftovers etc. are discarded in alleyways or in places other than a garbage container, this is an invitation to rodents to harbour and proliferate as unknowingly we create the perfect scenario for rodents to harbour and proliferate.”
Mr Pinder further noted that garbage collection would be stepped up in the area assisting the cleansing team that sweep and remove food.
BOTTLED WATER FIASCO
Mr Pinder also gave an update on the bottled water fiasco. He said last year, the Ministry of Health and Environment was made aware that some unscrupulous individuals sought to maximise profit by filling five gallon bottles with tap water and selling the water to unsuspecting consumers.
He said in order to eradicate this practice, the ministry had taken steps to effectively deal with it, drafting regulations and holding workshops to educate drivers as well as the owners of bottle water companies on proper practices.
Mr Pinder said the ministry had been bombarded with complaints in this regard and was therefore asking the public to be more vigilant. “You should make every effort to look for forms of identification such as nametags, truck logos or simply be able to identify the persons from whom you obtained your five gallon water,” he said.
LABELLING LEGISLATION SOUGHT
The Guardian visited the Environmental Monitoring and Risk Assessment Division (EMRAD), which tests everything that is consumed in The Bahamas and also conducts indoor and outdoor air quality testing, to determine if regulations regarding the labelling of water and other consumable items were about to be implemented. However, Anthony Ryan, Senior Laboratory Technologist, said such legislation was unlikely to be enacted this year. He said EMRAD had already made recommendations to the government.
“We have some regulations that are getting underway, and all food nutritional facts labelling would be addressed with the regulations,” he said.
Some of the content labels on bottled water, which the manufactures volunteer to include, indicate a trace of sodium in their water while other labels indicate that their water is sodium free. Asked why such labels indicate “sodium/salt free” when one could taste the salt, even in bottled water, Mr Ryan replied, “You’re right, water must contain a certain level of sodium, otherwise it would taste sharp and taste terrible. Ions give it a certain level of taste and you need the salt. You must have a certain level of salt in the water.” He added that there was even a trace of salt in the redtop-bottled water.
Regarding chlorination, Mr Ryan said the city water supply was chlorinated and added that residents using well water should switch to city water for safety. In the interim, he said well owners should add a chlorinator or chlorine tablets to treat the water before it gets into their homes. He did not recommend using water purifiers alone either, saying that they only remove ions from the water and do not kill bacteria.
Touching on water fluorination, a process adopted by many North American water systems, Mr Ryan said he recently completed a fluoride report and submitted it to the Department of Public Health for review. He said the Department was also looking at the possibility of adding fluoride to the water supply in the country, to include bottled and city water. “And the analysis that was done showed that the fluoride value in The Bahamas is about 0.3. The World Health Organisation said it should be about 1.5,” he said. “Fluoride is dangerous in that if you put too much fluoride in the water, it’s a problem; too little fluoride is a problem. But we seem to be in that safe zone of about 0.3 and there is no problem.”
He further indicated that the recommendation to add fluoride to the water supply would have to be decided by the Department of Public Health.
Mindell Small, The Nassau Guardian
