Cherry Hill, NJ Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)

5 of the Property Maintenance Code, titled Rat Harborage, requires all structures and exterior property to be kept free from rat infestation. Where rats are found, the owner must have them promptly exterminated by approved processes that will not injure human health, and must take proper precautions afterward to prevent re-infestation. The section names the enforcement resources available: the Township Animal Control Officer and the County Board of Health Officer may be consulted on proper extermination and prevention processes. Two subsections target the conditions that attract rats.

Subsection (a) requires all outdoor wood piles, including firewood, to be stored in the rear or side yard at ground level. Subsection (b) requires garbage stored outdoors in containers to be kept in the rear or side yard and stored above ground level, consistent with the general garbage storage rule at Section 15-18. 16 requires ratproof shields or storm windows on openable basement windows. 1(c). 2: a first offense may be resolved by a $50 guilty-by-affidavit payment, while a conviction in Municipal Court carries a fine of $100 to $1,000 or up to 90 days imprisonment, with each day of a continuing violation a separate offense.