Mice Inside School Buildings Addressed By Bernards Township Board Of Ed

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Mice reported in school buildings in Bernards Township were addressed at the Board of Education meeting on Monday night.

Board member Karen Gray gave a report from Director of Facilities William Larkin after a pest control question was brought up at a BT Connect meeting.

"Public school districts are precluded from using chemicals to address pest concerns with certain exceptions," said Gray.

However, the district currently contracts Western Pest Control which comes out to district facilities once a month.

"The only environmentally permitted means for addressing mice are sticky traps and looking to block points of entry," said Gray.

When Western Pest Control arrives each month they review staff-reported locations and add traps as necessary.

The presence of mice reported recently is not unusual for the district due to the season said Superintendent Nick Markarian to Patch.

"We do sometimes see mice this time of year as the weather turns colder. Whether at Ridge or any other school our facilities team handles each report with due diligence utilizing the services of professional pest management contractors," said Markarian.

Gray also reported said "incidents and frequency fluctuate with the season. As the weather becomes colder and wetter it is typical to have a higher number of reports."

The district has not "seen anything unusual this year and there are no other rodents besides mice."

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