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Residents and public‑health board press for local control of rodenticides; Select Board maintains prior position
Summary
Public commenters and the Advisory Council on Public Health urged Brookline to seek a home‑rule petition to limit second‑generation anticoagulant rodenticides after testimony about wildlife poisoning. The Select Board heard the testimony and held to its earlier favorable action on the original Article 18.
Several residents, the petitioner and the Advisory Council on Public Health (ACPH) urged the Select Board Nov. 4 to support stronger local restrictions on second‑generation anticoagulant rodenticides (ESARs), and specifically to pursue a home‑rule petition to allow Brookline to regulate private use.
ACPH position: Dr. Charles Homer, chair of ACPH, said the council agreed that ESARs present a hazard to wildlife and a potential hazard to children and pets, and that ACPH endorses stricter regulation. Dr. Homer told the board the council preferred a home‑rule petition over a nonbinding resolution because a home‑rule petition would allow the town to implement its own regulatory framework.
Petitioner testimony: Jocelyn Murphy, the Article 18 petitioner, recounted an incident in which a barred owl taken to Brookline’s animal control officer later died of suspected anticoagulant poisoning. Murphy and several public commenters argued local registration and a bylaw to limit private ESAR use would provide data and reduce wildlife poisonings; they noted advocacy from groups including AABON, MSPCA, the Sierra Club, and state legislators.
Board response: The Select Board indicated it would not reopen the prior hearing but would consider the ACPH memo and the petitioner’s materials at Town Meeting. The board said its earlier favorable action on the original Article 18 stands unless the board reconsiders before voting at Town Meeting.
Next steps: Article 18 will remain before Town Meeting; petitioners and ACPH may press for a home‑rule petition and a revised combined report for Town Meeting.
