Earning extra revenue through waste and recycling centres
Duncan Bosomworth, NPTA Technical Manager
Waste sites including recycling centres and biogas sites can prove to be a source of great revenue for those who don’t mind getting a bit dirty and smelly in the process!
Due to the materials being processed there will be no shortage of rats, mice, flies and possibly cockroaches that need to be controlled on a regular basis, pest activity still varies with the seasons with the need for regular fly control always being there despite the lower temperatures encountered in the winter months.
The colder weather will bring in rats and mice that if left unchecked can grow to levels normally encountered on pig and poultry farms. Once infested the numbers can grow to epidemic levels very quickly due to the amount of food available.
The sites come under strict health and safety policies due to the high number of potential hazards; these can range from dangerous pathogens to ten-ton bulldozers and anything in between. If you’re lucky enough to pick up for one of these sites, you’ll need to submit detailed RAMS from the outset and likely be inducted into their site procedures to ensure your safety whilst on site.
The sites I covered were all checked monthly with extra visits made as required, normally in the summer months, in the past I have visited these sites weekly in order to keep flies under control (generally house flies are the problem). If neighbouring properties complain of flies, local councils have the power to issue improvement orders or prosecute unless further control is gained. Pyrethroid insecticides used alongside larvicides and fly baits are the basis for controlling these pests as is monitoring. With the loss of carbamates a few years back I was concerned about dealing with resistance (that “will” and not “may” arise, by the way!). This was solved with the arrival of a product that literally entraps the insect, great for knocking down the tens of thousands of adult flies that can be encountered. I’ll let you Google where to get this brilliant product!
You’ll need to invest in some serious application equipment in order to get the sites treated in a reasonable amount of time too. I used the same apparatus to treat farms as it happened. At minimum a powered knapsack sprayer/mist blower.
With rodents, the main challenge is to find a place to bait, the external areas aren’t really a problem, it’s the inside that’s tricky, there aren’t many places that aren’t constantly being disturbed by heavy plant on these sites.
I have found it necessary to resort to the use of airguns to get the sites under control despite copious amounts of bait. Night shoots can bring in serious numbers of rats; we are talking over 600 rats in a 4-hour session on several occasions! Once numbers have been brought down the baiting can be carried out for more successfully.
Mice are also a challenge as like rats they have an abundance of food which makes controlling them difficult, it’s sometimes difficult to locate the actual harbourages amongst the carnage which ensues on these sites.
Pricing can be tricky to get right due to the changing levels of activity found on these sites, you could go in the winter and see very low levels of flies whilst in the summer you’re met with the opposite, as sites are constantly filled and emptied pest activity can fluctuate enormously.
Quote for plenty of time on site, start with monthly visits and include the addition of out of hours treatments as you can’t always apply insecticides during the day when the sites are manned. Don’t be overwhelmed by the sheer scale of some of these sites, they can be huge. If you can get at the previous incumbent’s folder, you have a starting point as to the volume of pesticides used over the year.
As well as the charge for routine visits to site, extra profit is available from the markup on pesticides used and extra visits you make to keep the sites under control, it can be very rewarding and is definitely at the sharp end of pest control. No boring walkabouts on these sites believe me!! Here at the NPTA we are more than happy to attend these sites and assist where we can if you need help sorting prices or delivering service should the need arise.
