Love is in the air for squeakhearts — and city lawmakers want to stop them from becoming new parents.
Councilmember Shaun Abreu (D-Manhattan) has proposed a rat birth control program jointly run by the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the Department of Sanitation — in the latest attempt to quell the plague.
Abreu — who helms the Committee on Sanitation and Solid Waste Management — said “ContraPest pellets” would work together with the city’s broader push to fight rats.
”We believe that we need to take a shock-and-awe approach to the rat problem by throwing everything we have at it,’’ the Democrat said in council chambers Thursday.
The contraceptives would be deployed in rat mitigation zones that cover at least 10 city blocks.
The pellets — which have an active ingredient called “triptolide” in them — will sterilize both male and female rats and impact ovarian function and sperm cell production.
This isn’t the first time NYC has tried birth control, however, but the rats — who have the potential to produce 15,000 young a year — have always prevailed.
In 1967, Gov. Nelson Rockefeller announced a plan to give rats contraceptives by dissolving a form of estrogen in human birth control in vegetable oil and dipping meat and grains in it.
And a decade ago the MTA and Bryant Park set out to use contraceptives, too.
ContraPest creator Loretta Mayer — who has been working with Abreu — said her salty and fatty pill is proving to be a success.
”It’s better than pizza [for the rats],’’ Mayer told the New York Times, but added that the challenge will be scaling up distribution noting a pound costs $5.
Mayor Eric Adams who declared war on rats when he took office is taking a “whole-of-government approach to win the fight” and installed his very own rat czar, Kathleen Corradi.
The city introduced an ambitious plan to containerize all garbage in New York City and has introduced free curbside composting to all New Yorkers.
“We will continue to work with all of our partners in government on rat-reduction strategies, and we will review the legislation,” a City Hall spokesperson told The Post.
Abreu said previous attempts in New York were unsuccessful because officials weren’t persistent and used liquid bait and did not pair it with trash containerization — which gives rats fewer food options.
The pilot program would also effectively protect wildlife Abreu said, noting the tragic death of escaped Central Park Zoo owl Flaco — who was poisoned last month.
“As captivated as our city was during Flaco’s year of freedom, we all collectively held our breath for the many risks that our city poses to wildlife and birds of prey,” he said.
“Flaco’s autopsy confirmed our worst fears: he ingested a fatal dose of rat poison. Rodenticides are not only toxic for the animals we love, they are increasingly ineffective at reducing rat infestations. That’s why we are introducing Flaco’s Law — to build a better, safer, more eco-friendly city.”
If successful, the pilot would take about a year to gather data to record its effectiveness and then another year would be afforded to report back to Hizzoner and Council Speaker Adrienne Adams, who is not related to the mayor.
Other cities have also tried rat contraceptives, including Boston, Columbus, Ohio, and Hartford, Conn.