'People don't want to carry poo around'

Adam Hewitt and Nicolle Laurie - 1195 • Published 1 Apr 2009 15:30 Comments 1 Comment

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DOG poo has been creating a stink in parks this week.

Wokingham Borough Council has said sorry after removing its 245 dog waste bins before it had installed more general litter bins, meaning dog owners started leaving plastic bags full of poo hanging on posts in parks.

The council says the policy will save £60,000 a year and that Government guidelines say dog mess put in litter bins is not a health hazard.

But shocked dog-walkers and parents in Ashenbury Park, Woodley, disagreed.

Alan Cornish, 66, said: "It has to be unhygienic, more dog mess is being left on the floor and not cleaned up and now kids can come along and fling it at each other. Saying it's to cut costs is a pathetic answer when we are subsidising other areas, it is about time that they sorted their finances. The bins should be bought back."

Mum Claire Ross from Winnersh said: "It is encouraging people not to clean up, people don't want to be carrying poo around."

John Breach, 48, from Woodley, said: "There is a bad smell and it is not cost effective if you have to get someone to go round and pick up the dog poo. If the park is dirty then noone will come and it may then become a risk to children."

Many other dog walkers and parents contacted the Chronicle to complain about the policy.

The council's general manager of place and neighbourhood services, Mark Moon, said: "The council has recently removed the 245 dog waste bins across the borough and will increase the number of general litter bins in certain areas and will ensure there is an adequate number of bins across the borough.

"Contractors are now installing these bins, which will be put in as a matter of urgency but this work may take several working days to complete. In the interim I'd like to apologise for any inconvenience this may cause residents and thank them for their patience."

Until more bins are put up, the council wants people to bag the waste and put it in household bins, not leave it hanging on posts.

Lib Dem Cllr Phil Challis said: "Putting dog poo in normal litter bins is a terrible idea. Residents do not want the smell and risk. More importantly, our children are at risk if they inadvertently come into contact with it, as it can cause blindness.

"I don't understand why the council didn't just leave the dog bins as they were and arrange to collect the contents when emptying the normal litter bins. It seems the Tory executive can't even sort out dog mess, let alone the mess they've made of running the council over the past seven years."

This article appeared in Reading Chronicle 01 Apr 09

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