Rats! The pests have re-emerged in the province

Alberta may have brieflylost its reputation of beingrat-freeagain.

Two Calgary recyclingplants have been infested with the pests, but according to one of them, the situation is under control.

Cascades Recovery+,a contractor that sorts recycled material from curbside collection in the city, confirmedthe presence of Norway rats at its facility in southeast Calgary.

The province said the other impactedfacility isCapital Paper Recycling, just a few blocks away in the same industrial area.

"The issue is under control and being managed onsite," saidHugo D'Amours, the vice-president of communications, public affairs and sustainability atCascades Recovery+.

D'Amours said that since the containers or packaging placed in blue bins may contain food residue, there's always a chancethat rats will be transported to the sorting facility.

"With about 160 trucks coming in every day, there's always a risk," he said.

"It's important to remind Calgarians and those in the Calgary regionto rinse recyclables. All recyclables must be empty, clean and dry this will help reduce the food sources that the rats are attracted to."

The province considers a rat infestation to be when there is more than one rat.

Minimal risk for nearby businesses, says official

While the two facilities that have rats arein close proximity to each other, Karen Wickerson, the province's rat and pest specialist, said there islittle risk to other businesses in the area.

"There's no other place that they really want to go because they have everything they have a warm, safe place to live and they have a food source," Wickerson said.

She added that the control program has been monitoring both facilities on the inside and the outside and has set upbait stations outside of them.

A rat-free history

The province'srat-free status means there is no resident population of rats and they are not allowed to establish themselves butdoes not mean Alberta never get rats.

According to the provincial government, Albertans have lived without the menace of rats since 1950, when the Rat Control Program was established.

"Small infestations occasionally occur," reads a statement on the government's website."But when found, the rats are isolated and eradicated through proven control methods."

Alberta has maintained a Rat Control Zone along the eastern border with Saskatchewan sincethe early 1950s.

Between1953 and 1959, Alberta's Rat Control Program evolved into its current structure, andpest control inspectors were appointed by municipalities.

"The program was established with an agricultural focus becausethe concern was them coming infrom Saskatchewan and the damage they would do to agriculture," Wickerson said.

"We know that the damage they cause can costmillions of dollars and particularly in urban areas."

WATCH | The history of Alberta's rodent enemy:

How Alberta keeps rats out

5 years ago

Duration 1:42

The province maintains its rodent-free status in 1968 by employing 250 pest control officers.