'Feathers everywhere in the house': Residents of Depot Road HDB block plagued by pigeons

SINGAPORE: When Mr Al and Ms El moved into their flat at 103A Depot Road in 2020, they did not expect that their first home together would have unwanted guests.

Over the past two years, the married couple – who requested that their full names not be published – have seen a huge increase in the pigeon population roosting at their block, resulting in an “unbearable situation”.

“I can't even open windows anymore because I'm just disgusted by the smell and what I see with the bird poo just everywhere,” said Ms El.

“Whenever we just crack open the window a little bit (at night), we wake up in the morning to see feathers everywhere in the house. It’s so gross.”

Their attempts to prevent the pigeons from roosting or nesting on their air-conditioner ledge – such as installing spikes and cleaning the area with vinegar – have done little to deter the birds.

“We still see them roosting in between the spikes and we still have to keep cleaning the ledge because their faeces are everywhere,” said Mr Al.

When CNA visited the block on Tuesday (Jul 23), several areas on the ground floor as well as the facade of the Housing and Development Board (HDB) block had been splattered with bird droppings. 

Many units in the 25-storey building had covered their AC ledge with nets, spikes or reflective items such as CDs to repel pigeons. But bird droppings and feathers could still be seen on them.

Adjacent blocks – including 103B and 102A – had some bird droppings on the ground floor but were visibly less affected than 103A. Residents said other blocks along Depot Road did not appear to have the same issue. 

RESIDENTS CALL FOR MORE CONCRETE ACTIONS

While residents CNA spoke to acknowledged the efforts of the town council, they called for more concrete actions to address the seriousness of the pigeon problem.

“(The town council) would tell us that they’ve put up flyers (to not feed the pigeons) or that they sent someone to sit around in the lobby to observe and that if they saw anyone doing so, they would fine the person,” said one resident, who only wanted to be known as Ms Yong. 

“But sometimes they'll call me back to say they sat there for a few hours but didn’t see anyone so they will just come back another day,” said the 43-year-old. 

Other residents told CNA that surveillance cameras had been put up temporarily to deter litterbugs as well as people from feeding the birds. However, this was later removed, for reasons unknown to residents. 

Mr Tommy Quek, who has been living at 103A since 2007, said he had complained to the town council before finally taking matters into his own hands and installing a net to cover his air-conditioner ledge last year.

“I just couldn’t tolerate (the situation) anymore, it was very bad,” he said. “My entire window was full of bird droppings and I could always hear the birds outside, it was so noisy.”

“Now they don’t roost outside my unit but it’s still very dirty because their droppings keep landing on my AC ledge.”

West Coast Town Council, which manages the estate, told CNA it was aware of the pigeon problem. But it did not respond to questions about the number of pigeon-related complaints it had received specifically for 103A Depot Road and its vicinity. 

“(West Coast Town Council) has been working on resolving this matter for an extended period now,” it said. 

“We are adhering closely to the steps of the recent pilot initiative by multi-agencies and town councils to manage the pigeon population,” said the town council, referring to a pilot by the National Parks Board, National Environment Agency and Singapore Food Agency that kicked off last month. 

Under the six-month initiative, three town council estates with large clusters of pigeons – Ang Mo Kio, Bishan-Toa Payoh and Tanjong Pagar – will step up the culling of the birds.

Authorities will also work with the three town councils as well as hawkers, F&B businesses and cleaners to improve refuse and food waste management, in an effort to reduce food sources for pigeons. 

West Coast Town Council did not respond to CNA’s queries about whether it would consider permanent solutions to deal with the pigeon population. Instead, it said it would continue to work with government agencies to manage this.

MP Rachel Ong (PAP-West Coast) said more workers have been deployed in the area in recent years. 

"We hope to see further progress and will continue to do our best for our residents," she added. 

HEALTH CONCERNS AND PERSISTENT LITTERING 

Besides the disruption to daily life, the pigeons have also triggered concerns over hygiene and safety among residents. 

“We have put up spikes on our AC ledge because I have young children and pigeon poop is very toxic,” said Ms Yong.  

“It prevents them from sitting on my air-con ledge but it doesn't prevent them from roosting on other units above me, so the poop still comes down to my unit.”

All seven residents CNA spoke to said they could not hang their laundry outside as it was too dirty. 

“I used to put our clothes outside to dry because I like to sun it a little," said Ms Yong. "But I've stopped doing that since last year because the pigeons will come and poop all on our clothes."

Ms Yong said some residents also threw food from their unit and it splatters on the ground. Whole "packets of food" are thrown, she added.

While CNA did not see any food being thrown out from units, discarded food wrappers were strewn in some areas on the ground floor. 

“This block used to be quite clean when we first moved in (10 years ago) but the environment has become quite unpleasant,” said Ms Yong.