Wirral Council is stepping up its efforts to tackle dog poo, as figures suggest the problem is getting worse.
Online reports of dog fouling in Wirral have risen by 23% since last March and the local authority wants to reverse this trend.
The pandemic has seen lots of people using country parks and Wirral’s coastline, with huge amounts of waste generated.
Since the start of the first national lockdown last March, the amount of street waste collected has increased by an average of 53% compared to 2019.
Last summer, a huge total of 51 tonnes of rubbish was collected from bulk bins at coastal and park locations.
The council’s latest plan, agreed at Tuesday night’s environment and transport committee, focuses on targeting its resources in the most important areas and educating people to make sure they throw away their waste and their pet’s waste properly.
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Additional resources will continue to be provided over the summer months, with 1,100 litre bulk bins placed at high footfall areas.
Those enjoying the outdoors will be encouraged to report hotspots, so that the council knows where to target its efforts and crucially enforcement action will follow in areas where there are persistent problems.
Wirral Council is also determined to promote its dog fouling reporting tool to help tackle the problem.
Using this tool, once the authority detects a hotspot issues such as the amount of bins, where the bins are placed, how often they are emptied and how more dog poo bags can be provided, will be considered.
If you see dog poo in the borough, you can report it here.
Dealing with waste is expensive, Wirral Council currently spends around £4m per year picking up litter, sweeping the streets and clearing fly tipping.
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Labour councillor Liz Grey, chair of the committee which agreed the plan, said: “We’ve listened to how residents want us to tackle this issue and as well as encouraging people to behave responsibly, we’ll be looking at how we can take enforcement action against those who don’t.
“In particular, we will take action against repeat offenders who blight our streets and ruin them for others.”
Got a Wirral story? Email me at george.morgan@reachplc.com
