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Resident seeks warrant article to curb second‑generation rodenticides on Henniker town property
Summary
Maria Colby, director of a local wildlife rehabilitation center, presented a petition asking voters to instruct the selectmen to prohibit second‑generation anticoagulant rodenticides on town‑owned property unless a hearing shows other integrated pest management measures have failed; the petition needs 25 signatures and Colby said she already has 20.
Maria Colby, a Henniker resident and director of Winds Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, told the select board on Jan. 6 that she will submit a petition asking voters to instruct the selectmen to prohibit the use of second‑generation anticoagulant rodenticides on town‑owned property unless a public hearing determines that other integrated pest‑management (IPM) methods have been tried and found ineffective.
Colby said she runs a rehabilitation facility at 64 Liberty Hill Road and treats roughly 1,600 wild animals a year. She told the board that wildlife and domestic animals in the region are showing signs of rodenticide poisoning and cited recent testing she said found high rates of anticoagulant residues in bobcats, fishers and foxes. Colby said the petition language is narrowly written to apply only to town property and would not limit homeowners’ ability to manage pests on private land.
Board members and residents asked Colby how the restriction would be enforced and whether the measure would apply only to town property; Colby and other commenters said New Hampshire law limits municipal authority to town‑owned property, but that selectmen can require town contractors to demonstrate they have followed IPM steps (sealing access, trapping, exclusion) before using bait. A speaker who said they previously served as a selectman described the petition logistics and said Colby had collected more than 20 signatures and needed 25 to place the article on the warrant.
Colby described alternatives discussed at a conference she organized that included pest‑control companies, veterinarians, state legislators and wildlife rehabilitators: nonlethal traps, rodent fertility control, exclusion and targeted baiting only as a last resort. She urged the board either to adopt a policy requiring contractors to present alternatives before applying rodenticide on town property or allow the petition to proceed so the public can vote.
The select board did not take formal action on the petition during the meeting; town staff and selectmen discussed the legal limits of municipal authority and the next procedural steps for a warrant article. Colby said she will continue collecting signatures to reach the 25 required to place the article on the town meeting warrant.
