In recent years, Rome’s sanitation has become a major local political issue, with protests, charges and counter-claims on all sides. But now there are some new initiatives that may either help change the situation, or provide new material for comedians mocking the city’s woes.
The city is counting on flocks of falcons, placed on trees, to chase the flocks of starlings whose waste can make city streets slick when wet, and will also use recordings of distress calls. The city used to have many falcons, but most were wiped out by DDT use in the 1970s. They have recently been coming back, and there may be 20 pairs in the city.
Another bird issue, seagulls, is in the plans for another solution: sterilization.
Rome is also attacking its overgrown parks and lawns with a living weapon: hungry sheep. Flocks of them have been deployed already in several parks and the grounds of villas.
