In early April, the Prague Water Supply and Sewerage Company (PVK) began a comprehensive rat extermination of the sewer network in selected capital city areas. They have prepared 13.5 tons of bait.
According to information from the PVK press release, Prague’s sewer system is home to several million rats. Their numbers are kept under control thanks to the annual regular rat extermination of sewer entrances. This year’s extermination started at the beginning of April.
“We start in Nové Město, Rašínovo nábřeží, around Petřín, at Pražačka, and at Jarov,” said spokesman Tomáš Mrázek. “Other locations we have approved with the municipality and individual city districts will follow,” he added.
Extermination will end in October
In mid-May, for a few weeks during the holidays, and at the end of October, exterminators will focus on inspecting places where rats are most commonly found. The Prague hygiene station and environmental departments of city districts will select these.
“For this year, we have prepared 13.5 thousand kilograms of bait, which we will use to treat 13.5 thousand sewer entrances,” Mrázek added.
Rats are also on the surface
In addition to the sewer network, rats are also frequently found on the surface, especially around trash cans and in untreated greenery full of waste. Construction activity also drives them out of the underground.
“Other problem areas are places inhabited by the homeless, who do not pay much attention to cleanliness,” said Mrázek.
The bait contains scrap, corn, and chocolate PVK uses Hubex for rat extermination. It is a bait suitable for a humid environment, having, for example, breadcrumbs, scrap, corn, chocolate, fat, and an effective anticoagulant substance.
The baits are placed exclusively in the sewer network, not on the surface. Pet owners can rest assured that their four-legged friends will not be harmed.
The company inspects the entire network every year
In addition to rats, PVK protects the sewer network from damage and accidents. Last year, employees checked 142 kilometers of the sewer network and reviewed over 2,000 inlet shafts and objects.
“During the inspections, we found 28 network accidents, and we also developed 72 proposals for eliminating defects, which we included in the repair and investment plan,” Tomáš Mrázek said in a press release.
The Prague sewer network is 3,791 kilometers long, and the length of sewer connections is 1,025 kilometers. Approximately 92% of wastewater is discharged to the Central Wastewater Treatment Plant in Bubeneč, and the rest is sent to one of the 21 treatment plants on the city’s outskirts.