Ridgefield, CT Public Health Rules: Rodent Control (2026)

Section 305-16(A), added to Chapter 305 in 1990, puts an affirmative duty on every occupant of a dwelling or dwelling unit: refuse, garbage and other organic waste has to be stored and discarded in a manner that is clean, sanitary and safe, specifically one that will not provide food or harborage for rodents and insects. The containers used for that storage have to be secure against pests getting in and have to be watertight. The section carves out an exception for mulch piles and compost heaps, which are allowed as long as they are kept clean, sanitary and safe and do not become a public or private nuisance to neighbors.

Section 305-16(B) separately makes owners of buildings with three or more dwelling units responsible for supplying the storage containers themselves, while occupants of single- and two-family homes furnish their own. When a property does slide into a rodent or insect problem, § 305-17 gives the Director of Health authority to act: on finding accumulated garbage, rubbish, tin cans, paper, boxes, furniture or similar material that might invite insects or rodents or otherwise threaten public health, the Director can send written notice by mail or delivery ordering the owner or occupant to remove it, and the notice can specify how the removal has to be done.

If the property owner or occupant ignores that order, or ignores it for more than 10 days when no deadline is given, § 305-18 lets the Director of Health enter the land, remove the material, and bill the cost of the cleanup to the property through the Tax Collector.