If you live in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, leaving trash in your car could now cost you up to $500, or even land you in jail. Yes, really. Local officials have introduced the unusual rule as part of a push to tackle the town’s growing rat problem, and it has only just taken effect. Unsurprisingly, the measure is already shaping up to be a contentious one among residents,

 

The town’s new local ordinance states that “it shall be unlawful for any person to place, leave, dump or permit to accumulate any garbage, rubbish or trash in any building, vehicle and their surrounding areas in the town so that the same shall or may afford food or harborage for rats.” Under the municipal code, any breach of this rule “shall constitute a nuisance.”