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13. COMPLAINTS.
The number of complaints received from the general
public during the year was 429 compared with 500 for the
previous year. The highest number of complaints recorded was
920 in 1947 and, with the exception of the year 1953, the
figures recorded have shown a steady decline.
The following is a brief tabulated list of causes for
complaints received during 19571-
Sanitary defects 86
Rodents 14O
Defective Ashbins 2
Drains and sanitary arrangements 76
Overcrowding 5
Pood 31
Nuisance from Smoke 15
Defective Yards and Paving 5
Insect Pests 15
Accumulations 9
Animals 1
Water 3
Others 41
429
14. RODENT AND INSECT PEST CONTROL.
As in previous years, it is pleasing to report that no
legal action was required under the provisions of the
Prevention of Damage by Pests Act, 1949. This is in. itself
an indication of the co-operation received from householders
and business people.
When infestations have been dealt with which require
co-ordinated effort, excellent co-operation has been
received from the officers of adjacent Authorities and the
contractors to British Railways.
During 1957 three treatments were carried out to the
sewers. One hundred and seven of the manholes known by
previous experience to require attention were treated. Owing
to shortage of labour the first treatment was by a contractor
using a highly toxic substance - sodium fluoracetate. This
is the first occasion on which it has been used for this
purpose outside the City of London and after considering all
the factors involved, permission to use the substance was given
by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
Using methods devised by the Department, this proved to be
a very economical means of dealing with sewer infestation. The
results of two subsequent treatments using other poisons confirmed
that the use of sodium fluoracetate is a distinct advantage
in dealing with rodents in sewers.
The need for this work is emphasized by the fact that
many surface rat infestations are traceable to defective
drains, and more rarely to faults in the sewers. During the
year 2+2 defects of drainage systems were traced which had been
proved to be the cause of the infestation.