In Paris, research is being conducted to find out to what extent humans and rats can “live together”. Some say that the rodents affect the quality of life of Parisians and, despite efforts to exterminate the animals, they continue to be seen on the streets of France. capital. reports CNN.

A city council meeting became heated Thursday after the mayor of the 17th arrondissement of Paris, Geoffroy Boulard, a member of the center-right Republican Party, asked city leaders to come up with a more ambitious plan to combat the spread of rats in public spaces. .

“The presence of rats on the surface harms the quality of life of Parisians,” said Boulard, who criticized Anne Hidalgo, the mayor of Paris, for not doing enough to remove rats from the French capital, particularly during strikes earlier this year. year, when garbage was accumulating on the streets.

Are people prejudiced against rats?

Anne Souris, Paris’ deputy mayor for public health, said Paris mayor Anne Hidalgo is setting up a commission to study the extent to which humans and rats can “coexist”.

Bullard’s displeasure also came after he came across a study currently underway in Paris, the Armageddon Project, which is said to be aimed at helping the city deal with its rat population, and among its aims is to combat prejudice against rats and helping Parisians live better with them.

The study is funded by the French government, although the city of Paris is a partner in the project.

Suiris explained that the project is exploring how humans and rats can live together in a way that is “most efficient and at the same time ensures that it is not unbearable for Parisians”.

Although rats can spread the disease, the deputy mayor said the rats in question are not black rats that carry the plague, but other types of rats that carry diseases such as leptospirosis, a bacterial disease.

Suiris also highlighted some of the actions the city has taken as part of its 2017 rat control plan, including investing in thousands of new bins to “bring the rats back underground.”

Suiris later tweeted that rats in Paris did not pose a “significant” risk to public health. She added that she had asked the French High Council of Health to intervene in the debate.

“We need scientific advice, not political press releases,” she said.