Carmarthenshire County Council said it is looking to create an in-house pest control service in a move welcomed by a council committee.
The local authority used to operate a pest control service but stopped it in 2010. Since then council officers have given advice about pest-related problems and also taken action through enforcement work.
The authority re-started pest control work in 2016 but only for council tenants, which the report said led to positive feedback.
The idea is to extend the service to the wider public, with national statistics showing an increase in pest call-outs to houses of multiple occupation and the private rented sector.
Contract work with businesses such as restaurants and farms could potentially be developed, and eradication work in sewers potentially recharged to Welsh Water.
The report said the service would need to be self-financing but that call-out charges would be set at a “reasonable” level.
Committee chairman, Cllr Kevin Madge, said he felt the need for such a service was there “in a massive way”.
He was worried though that council cutbacks could pose a problem for a new service. He added: “The rats don’t go away. The wasps don’t go away.”
