Page 18 THE VILLADOM TIMES I • April 24, 2013 Waldwick’s Borough Park could soon offer refuge for brown bats if Eagle Scout candidate Trevor Ramundo is allowed to proceed with his community service project. Ramundo plans to install six bat houses on three posts at various locations within the park. The project is necessary, he told the mayor an council at a recent meeting, because northern New Jersey has recently experienced a sharp decline in the brown bat population due to the devastating white nose fungus. That disease has killed nearly 90 percent of New Jersey’s bat population. “The bats are a very important part of the local ecosystem,” Ramundo said in his project proposal. “They consume 10 times their body weight in insects each day.” He added that the new bat houses, which would be installed at a height of 15 feet, would help support the local bat population. In addition to playing a vital role in insect control, bats also help pollinate plants. Ramundo plans to begin work in May and estimated that the project would take three to six weeks to complete. He will recruit six to 12 volunteers to assist him with the work. The Waldwick mayor and council members expressed their support for Ramundo’s project after hearing details about his project, and Councilman Andrew Brennecke offered to speak with the Waldwick Board of Health regarding the proposal. At a subsequent meeting, Brennecke reported that the board of health had no issues with the project, but recommended consulting animal control as well. This department suggested changes in the placement of the boxes. Discussions about the project are ongoing. An information sheet Ramundo distributed to the council addresses some of the common concerns people have about bats. That document points out that bat houses will not attract bats to live in local homes. “If bats were attracted to your home, they would probably already be roosting there,” the sheet states. “It is better to provide bats with a place to live that is outside of your house. Bat houses are a better roosting option than your own house.” Eagle Scout candidate plans to install bat houses The literature also states that guano buildup should not be a problem, as rain, sun, and wind break down guano naturally. Bat guano is nitrogen rich and acts as a fertilizer, but is not known to be toxic or harmful to humans, dogs, cats, or other animals, the document states. The literature further addresses rabies concerns, stating that very few bats have this disease. If approved, Ramundo’s project would continue the efforts of other area Scouts who have worked to help reestablish the local bat population. Last summer, Eagle Scout Nicholas Hewitt from Ho- Ho-Kus Troop 54 installed bat houses in the 16 Acres, an undeveloped property within Ho-Ho-Kus. In recent years, Girl Scout Katherine Riccobene of Franklin Lakes presented a program about bats at New Jersey Audubon’s Lorrimer Sanctuary, which is located on Ewing Avenue in Franklin Lakes. Riccobene earned the Gold Award for her project. Boy Scout Thomas Osborne of Clifton also constructed a number of bat houses for Audubon locations throughout New Jersey. Lorrimer Sanctuary Director Patrick Scheuer previously said six of Osborne’s boxes were for the Franklin Lakes location.