There are few things more annoying than going for a walk in your local park or popping over to a friend’s house, only to be greeted by an unwelcome visitor on the street instead: dog mess. Whilst most of us are responsible pet-owners, not everyone picks up after their beloved pooch and some leave their dog’s poop behind for an unlucky neighbour or two to step in.
There are by-laws, however, aimed at dealing with the problem, and councils have the power to issued fixed penalty notices against people caught not clearing up after their pet. To check the situation in Neath Port Talbot county, WalesOnline contacted the county council to ask how many fixed penalty notices had been issued for the last year due to littering and dog-fouling offences – and the results have surprised many local residents. For more stories about Neath Port Talbot, go here
For the time-frame, February, 2021, to February, 2022, Neath Port Talbot County Borough Council issued just five fixed penalty notices for littering offences, and just two for dog fouling/dog mess offences. There were no reports of multiple fixed penalty notices, this means no-one received more than one, and there was no more than one fixed penalty notice issued on any particular street or neighbourhood in the county borough, a spokesperson for the environment team at Neath Port Talbot Council said. There was also no-one fined higher than the set fixed penalty notice fee of £100, for either littering or dog-fouling.
After receiving the data from Neath Port Talbot Council, we asked local people on various social media groups whether dog-fouling was an issue in their community - and many said they were surprised to read that just two fixed penalty notices for dog-fouling had been issued in the last 12 months.
Do you think more should be done to stop dog-fouling in Neath Port Talbot? What rules would you like to see introduced? We'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below.
Among the areas frequently mentioned for dog-mess were Cimla and Pen-y-Dre in Neath, Aberavon beach at Sandfields near Port Talbot, and “most of Briton Ferry”.
Cimla resident, Allison Jones, said: "I am extremely surprised that only two people have been fined!, I live in Cimla, it's awful at times, people even leaving their mess outside of the primary school for small children to walk in, I’ve had it left outside my drive! I have a dog myself so it is very frustrating when good dog owners clean their mess and others do not seem to think it’s their job?"
Allison added that she had contacted Neath Port Talbot Council “many times” to report dog-fouling, so was surprised so few people had been caught and issued a fixed penalty notice.
“Do more council workers need to be on patrol?” she added. “Cameras to be put up in dog walking areas? And it wouldn’t harm to have more dog bins in the area.”
Another Cimla resident said: "Cimla Cresent is becoming much worse in recent times due to lazy dog owners! Where are patrol staff? Never see them! This situation is not helped either by the council who are often very slow in emptying the dog poo bin on Cimla Crescent, had to contact [them] on several occasions previously as the bin overflowing with poo bags, not a pleasant experience for local residents or dog-walkers."
In the Neath North area, locals said councillors were working to draw attention to the issue of dog mess being left on streets – but little was actually being done, they said.
Resident Sarah Hemington said: “The emphasis local councillors put on the fact that there are fines for people who do not pick up after their dog is obviously misplaced. Neath North have just recently put stickers on lamp posts stating you can be fined, however, everybody is aware that this is the case and it does very little to deter those that are willing to continue to do it.
“[My street in Neath North] is a very busy road for footfall, including dog-walking. The amount of dog mess is ridiculous. I’ve not only had it right outside my driveway, but also on my drive and in my garden as well as brought through my house by my children stepping in it. I have two dogs myself and wouldn’t dream of being so irresponsible.
“As it is evidently so difficult to catch people in the act, seeing as only two fines have been issued, wouldn’t it be better to be able to issue a fine for anybody caught walking a dog without poo bags on their person? As a rugby mum, I also think rugby fields and sports fields should have a blanket ban on dogs – the amount of dog mess when children are playing, falling, on these fields is horrendous – and there is a medical risk to this as well.”
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Meanwhile, the situation is no better in Port Talbot, locals say. One resident said the amount of dog mess in the Fairfield area was particularly “shocking”.
“[Dog mess is] pretty much everywhere, I’m in Fairfield and it’s disgusting. People let their dogs go next to the only two poo bins, yet still don’t pick it up,” the resident said. “Can’t walk to my car without avoiding a pile of it, I am a dog owner who always has poop bags! It’s not just on the pavements, people hang the bags off trees and fences as there’s not enough bins around. Two people [receiving fixed penalty notices] is a joke. [And dog mess on] the beach is awful, people think ‘oh, the sea will wash it away’ – people swim in there, it’s disgusting and takes two minutes to pick it up.”
Another resident said walking along the promenade at Aberavon beach trying to avoid dog mess was “like playing hopscotch,” while another said the seafront and prom area were “terrible” for dog mess. “All you can smell is dog urine and mess, not the impression that visitors to our lovely beach need to make them want to come back,” the resident added.
And in Briton Ferry, one resident said dog mess is “always on the pavements” and even dog owners who do remember to bring poo-bags with them while walking their dog, often “dump the bags of dog poo on the pavement.” Another Briton Ferry resident said waking along the street was “an awful game of dodge the s*** when you have a pram and a small child walking.”
So what can be done?
Many of the residents we spoke to said they’d like to see more dog poo bins in parks and streets throughout Neath Port Talbot county borough, to help encourage people to dispose of their dog mess responsibly.
One resident said: “Most of Neath Port Talbot is full of dog mess, not only dog mess – litter as well.
“Trouble is not enough bins and if there is a bin it’s either overflowing or burnt out by youths.” Another said: “Unfortunately an issue in many areas is that there are not enough dog bins, I walk regularly around the area, Ryslyn in Afan forestry, there is one dog bin in the car park, nothing in the park itself! What a shame then to see bags of mess hanging on trees in the area. Brombil reservoir is also the same!”
The council perspective
A Neath Port Talbot Council spokesman said: “Between February 2021 and February 2022 the waste enforcement section, which enforces dog fouling as well as fly-tipping, littering, abandoned vehicles, and environmental crimes, has lost a number of officers due to retirement, resignation, and a secondment. Two new officers have already been recruited and are undergoing training with further recruitment ongoing.
“Due to Covid restrictions and resources waste enforcement were unable to conduct whole-team dog fouling patrols during the majority of this period although these have recently been reinstated due to restrictions being relaxed and a fixed penalty notice (FPN) has recently been issued during a patrol to a person who failed to pick up after their dog. Waste enforcement officers are always on the lookout for any offences being committed. Should you witness one of these offences please report it immediately to our waste enforcement team via our website.”
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