Fears over new US pest control devices

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Fears over new US pest control devices

The use of the Rodenator for pest control in this country is a contentious one.

Friday, 30 May 2008

Controversy surrounds the use of new pest control devices from the US.

The use of novel pest control devices from the US, such as the Rodenator and Burrow Blaster, has prompted concern from industry experts as reports emerge about their misuse.

"These devices are designed not only to flush burrowing pests, but to destroy their habitat. This is to pest control what napalm was to jungle warfare," said Shooting Times Pest Control columnist, Ian Barnett.

He added that indiscriminate use by unwary or unreliable controllers, without a proper risk assessment, could result in disaster: "Damage to utility services, collapsed highways, flooding, explosion, electrocution - who knows?"

Natural England admitted it also has concerns about using these devices to collapse burrows because of the practical difficulties of ensuring that burrows and tunnels are free of animals.

Claims that it takes 'one minute per burrow to do the job' and that the device can be used to destroy 250 to 300 rabbit burrows a day give rise to concern. Pest controllers, farmers or anyone else considering using such equipment to collapse empty burrows are advised to consider carefully whether or not they are confident that their proposed use of the device will be legal.

The 1981 Wildlife and Countryside Act (Section 11(1)) states that killing any animal with explosives (other than firearms ammunition) is an offence. There is a technical possibility of such use being licensed under Section 16, but no such licence has ever been issued for Rodenators.

A National Gamekeepers’ Organisation (NGO) spokesman told Shooting Times: "In September 2006, when the Rodenator appeared in the UK, we wrote to DEFRA asking whether it was legal to use the device for collapsing empty burrows."

"DEFRA replied that the device could be used legally for this purpose, provided the burrow was not protected (ie. a badger sett or in an ancient monument) and that all reasonable means were taken to ensure no animals were inadvertently killed. However, this did not amount to a DEFRA licence, as some have suggested."

For further advice or information, contact Paul Butt at Natural England, tel 01233 811265 or email paul.butt@naturalengland.org.uk.

The rest of this article appears in 29 May issue of Shooting Times.

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Comments

Neil Walker

Wed, 11th Jun 2008 16:03:49

Dear Sir, Shooting Times Pest Control columnist, Ian Barnett commented that, indiscriminate use by unwary or unreliable controllers, without a proper risk assessment, could result in disaster: "Damage to utility services, collapsed highways, flooding, explosion, electrocution - who knows?" "For heavens sake" Get out of this nanny state mentality and please don't patronize the shooting community per-se. Is there a presupposition that the sale of these machines will escalate beond comprehension, and that we shall all carry one around just in case? Moreover: I am certain that 99.999% of the shooting fraternity have no desire whatsoever to play at being Blaster Bates. Much more sensible are the comments of Mr Pinney, Mr Owen Pinney is absolutely correct in his assesment and professional overview of the more important issues here. As yet no one has explained why if the warren is devoid of it's inhabitants, we should feel a need to collapse it in the first place. Are we to presuppose that, if the inhabitants are out on vacation and we disenfranchise them of their abode, that it shall somehow persuade them to move on and excavate the area no more? As importantly, whilst never feeling a propensity to justify the realities of my sport, I have always (as should we all)endeavoured to dispatch my quarry quickly and with little if any suffering. So someone remind me again!!!! what are these abominable atrocities used for? N Walker.

Owen Pinney

Sat, 7th Jun 2008 09:30:32

Dear Sir, I have seen your recent article on the presence of the 'Rodentator' and 'Burrow Blaster' devices in this Country. Quite apart from any personal 'knee-jerk' feelings of revulsion that the use of such methods could be condoned there is direct evidence that their use has been seen to inflict suffering, in the Veterinary Record during February 2008 Bidewell et al reported on having seen a number of cases of rabbits that were badly burned as a consequence of the heat and explosion resulting from the ignition of the gas mixture that had been introduced into the warren. I assume that the majority of your readers would consider themselves to maintain a humane attitude in their dealings with the various species that they encounter and that this technique would not fulfill their individual or collective requirements. Those of us who are involved with field sports make strenuous efforts to avoid the production of unnecessary suffering and in my opinion we should join together in order to achieve a ban on the use of methods such as these which do nothing to enhance the image that we are trying to project quite apart from being of questionable efficiency in the task for which they are being used. Yours sincerely, M.O.Pinney B.Vet.Med.,M.R.C.V.S.

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