LYNN – An amendment to a city litter and refuse ordinance was approved Tuesday, allowing residents extra time to remove their trash barrels from the street the day after pickup.The previous ordinance required residents to place their trash outside of their home after 3 p.m. on the day before pickup and remove barrels by 6 p.m. the following day.Residents will now be required to place their trash outside no earlier than 5 p.m. the day before scheduled pickup, no later than 7 a.m. on the day of and they will be allowed an extension of a few extra hours to take their barrels inside by 11:30 p.m.Ward 5 City Councilor Paula Mackin and Ward 6 City Councilor Peter Capano devised the plan to amend the current litter and refuse ordinance to better serve the city and curb the rampant rodent problem that has plagued the city in recent years.Improper disposal of trash and barrels without covers have allowed rats to pick apart trash bags in hopes of scoring their next meal, thus wreaking havoc throughout the city.Councilor At-large Charles O’Brien requested a tweak to the amendment to allow residents to have until 11:30 p.m. to removal trash barrels from the street.”I agree that trash shouldn’t go out before 5 p.m. the day before, but I do have a problem with the 6 p.m. deadline to take the barrels in, because there are people who work second shift and aren’t home until late at night.”O’Brien said since trash would no longer be in the barrels at night, it would make sense to allow residents a leeway of a few extra hours.”It would just be fair to people who work later,” he said.Mackin and Capano agreed with and accepted O’Brien’s suggestion.In addition, O’Brien’s request to have the first offense of non-compliance a warning rather than a fine had been previously approved, allowing residents to ease into the new requirement.The second offense would result in a $100 fine and subsequent offenses would be $300 each time. The Department of Inspectional Services (ISD) would enforce the fines.Lynn resident Louise Yakoobian said while she carefully disposes of trash, others in the city often do not.”I practically tape everything when I throw it out,” she said. “But I do see a lot of nonsense out there and people should be fined because of it. I’m also seeing a lot of TVs and computers on the streets again.”The ordinance also calls for trash to be stored in a heavy, plastic or metal container with tight-fitting covers that are fly- and rodent-resistant, non-flammable and waterproof.On the day of trash pickups, residents are allowed to place trash in heavy-duty plastic bags on the street.Mackin previously said that as long as trash barrels are sealed tight, a meal would not be offered to rodents and that they would most likely go away.Since the summer, Lynn Lumber has offered barrels for sale at a reduced price to residents.