Perspective: Rats on the beach

Large brown rats. Looking as at home on the beach as a scuttle of crabs.

Pieter and I took a stroll on the promenade on Sunday afternoon with our boys and to our horror we came upon the sight of a family of rats scavenging on the beach, right under the noses of the beachgoers still swimming in Granny’s Pool.

I would almost not have been surprised had they whipped out their beach towels and an umbrella and set up camp.

They were entirely too comfortable and brazen. I mean a few little rats in the bushes is quite acceptable and expected for any town on the edge of a coastal forest.

But six rats about to start building sand castles is quite another story. As gross as they are, the rats are not really the problem.

They are only the symptom of a far worse problem.

Beachgoers are leaving their rubbish all over the beach. It’s easy pickings! You might just as well put up a sign: “All day buffet: Vermin welcome!” The plump waists of our rodent friends tell me they are indeed living the good life.

I can moan all day about it but it does little to change people’s behaviour. Rubbish bins may be only metres away but yet very little rubbish ends up INSIDE the bins.

I think its time we as residents of Ballito and KwaDukuza municipality begin taking matters into our own hands. Firstly I propose we implement fines for littering. Maybe visitors will care more when it’s hurting their pockets.

Let beach monitors begin patrolling at peak times and hand out fines to anyone who as much as drops a cigarette butt.

A great many towns and counties across the world fine people for littering and apparently it’s a great source of revenue.

Pay parking has not been very popular and the municipality says they are keen to find an alternate revenue source to rates.

This is the perfect fit. They will create jobs, rake in revenue, clean up the town and punish litter bugs all at the same time.It’s a win-win.

Apart from fines, if residents no longer tolerate this behaviour it will send the message that littering is ‘just not done here’.

So how about if anyone ‘drops’ their litter in our town, we be good neighbours and return it to them?

Politely of course, but I think the message would be clear. If we no longer tolerate this behaviour it will go a long way to shaming the perpetrators into conforming.

We need to start taking littering seriously if we want to see a significant change. Come on, we do not want rats on our beaches!

I would love to hear your thoughts on the matter: email editor@northcoastcourier.co.za

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