Mayor Rahm Emanuel and the Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation (DSS) have just announced a new pilot program that may solve Chicago's rat and rodent problem without using poison.

Rodents, especially rats, have been a growing problem in the city with many approaches tried--but without hoped for results.

The new plan that is being used successfully in several U.S. cities including Boston is a seemingly simple one--and better yet it is environmentally friendly.

It calls for doing in the critters with a spoonful of "medicine." The idea is to ice out the rodents using a spoonful of dry ice placed directly into the rodent's burrow, then covering it.

How does it work? It seems that the dry ice causes a chemical reaction as it melts turning into carbon dioxide, which suffocates the rodents.

“This pilot program is one more way we are working to improve our neighborhoods and the quality of life for all Chicagoans,” said Mayor Emanuel. “Investments in our city services are the cornerstones that help make our communities stronger and move the City of Chicago forward.”

Crews will be evaluating variables like storage and longevity, overall success rates and potential cost saving to determine whether the product could become a permanent tool for the Bureau of Rodent Control.

According to DSS Commissioner Charles L. Williams. “Dry ice is an alternative that cities have been experimenting with and achieving tremendous success. And we are excited to evaluate its effectiveness here in Chicago to determine if it could be an added tool in our arsenal against rodents.”

The testing by The Bureau of Rodent Control is scheduled to continue into late fall, weather permitting, with a decision whether to implement the program being made in spring 2017. Preliminary results have been promising reporting a reduction of more than 60 percent of the rodent population after treating an area with dry ice.

For more information on rodent control services, call 311 or visit the City of Chicago.

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