Liverpool dog owners are being urged to self police the scourge of waste left in public.
Cllr Abdul Qadir, cabinet member for neighbourhoods, said the city has experienced an increase of irresponsible owners leaving their pet’s mess throughout parks and has urged people to change their behaviour. As Love Parks Week begins across the country, Liverpool Council has partnered with Keep Britain Tidy to encourage dog owners to act responsibly.
Research by Keep Britain Tidy identified how since the start of last year, the amount of dog muck being left behind by poorly trained owners has increased to the equivalent of 193 extra wheelie bin loads a day across the North West. Liverpool spends around £9.5m a year cleaning up litter, and the council has partnered with the independent charity to tackle litter in the city and change behaviour – with a summertime focus on litter in parks and dog fouling.
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Linked to this, a month-long consultation on a draft Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) was launched last month. If adopted, owners would be fined for failing to bag and dispose of their dog mess. The consultation is in response to more than 1,800 dog fouling complaints between January 2020 and January 2022.
A new PSPO would also make it a requirement for dogs to be kept on leads in certain parts of the city, such as around park lakes and children’s play areas, and authorised officers would have the right to ask owners to put dogs on leads if they were found to be flouting the rules. Liverpool Council said it had dealt with 41 complaints of dog incidents in play areas since 2020 and received eight complaints of damage and dog fouling to play equipment caused by dogs.
In 2021 a play area was so badly contaminated with dog fouling that it had to be shut for a deep clean. The council is also proposing that dogs are excluded from fully enclosed maintained sports areas such as football and rugby pitches, bowling greens and tennis courts.
This will also include fully enclosed sports areas commonly known as multiactivity areas. Certain people would be exempt from the order such as those using disability dogs.
Cllr Qadir said: “Our parks are there for everyone to enjoy, but unfortunately some people aren’t being responsible when it comes to disposing of their dog’s waste. There’s been an increase in unbagged dog poo being left on the ground and even bagged dog poo being left hanging from places like railings or trees – which isn’t acceptable.
“As part of our partnership with Keep Britain Tidy, we have an opportunity to change people’s mindset when it comes to littering – alongside legal proposals that would see on-the-spot fines for those who don’t comply.”
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