Editor’s note: The following letter is addressed to Mayor Lempert and Council members.

After living in our lovely town for 40 years, I learned of a new situation in consolidated Princeton that is very troubling because it may have a serious negative impact on public health.

Raccoons have been a problem in our area for many years — always carefully taken care of by our small game officer, Mr. Johnson, who would supply a cage and then remove them, when caught. Recently, Mr. Johnson informed me that the administration has decided that the small game officer is no longer responsible for caging and removing small game.

Surely, this is a dangerous decision. As you may know, raccoons are a major reservoir for rabies. According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control), the animal species that accounts for the largest fraction of rabid animals in the U.S. is the raccoon. Of the 6,154 cases of animals infected with rabies, in 2010, 2,246 (36.5 percent) were in raccoons, skunks and bats accounted for 23 percent each, cats 6.9 percent, and dogs 1.1 percent. (These data can be found in the Journal AVMA Vol. 239. Sept. 15, 2011 and on the Web under rabies.)

This should thus be of special concern to Princetonians because of the risk of direct or indirect contact with raccoons. Feral cats, not rare in Princeton, are often exposed to raccoons, and domesticated cats and dogs can also come into contact with them.

Princeton spends a lot of money on services such as garbage collection. Would it not be reasonable that a small part of our considerable tax dollars go to protect our children and small animals? I hope you will reconsider your decision.

Elaine German, MD

Autumn Hill Road