The Seoul Metropolitan Government said on the 23rd it will introduce a smart pest control system as civil complaints about recent rat sightings in the city have increased.
The smart pest control system being introduced this time is equipment fitted with Internet of Things (IoT) sensors. When a rat lured by a chemical enters the device, the shutter closes automatically and an alert is sent. The staffer who receives the alert collects the captured rat.
Until now, the Seoul Metropolitan Government and district offices have mainly responded to rat sightings by placing rat poison or traps.
The reason the Seoul Metropolitan Government is adopting the new system is the recent increase in complaints of rat sightings. Complaints about rats in Seoul, which were about 1,000 in 2021, totaled 1,336 in 2022 and 1,886 in 2023, and topped 2,000 last year. This year, 1,555 had been filed through July.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to install the smart pest control system mainly in areas where complaints have been filed that rats were frequently sighted. It also plans to visualize the results of the system's operation based on a geographic information system (GIS) and analyze in real time the rat capture rate, the rate of decline in reports, and other metrics for management.
In addition, the Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to run public outreach that includes precautions for trash disposal, as rats mainly come outside to eat food left outdoors at markets, restaurants, and parks.
Song Eun-cheol, head of the Seoul Metropolitan Government's Infectious Disease Control Division, said, "We will create a pleasant and safe urban environment by promoting integrated public-private pest control along with the smart pest control system so that rats do not appear in residential areas."