Council to hand out free dog poo bags

A PARISH council is to hand out free dog poo bags in a bid to crackdown on inconsiderate pet owners allowing animals to foul on pavements and fields.

Easton-in-Gordano and Pill Parish Council has ordered in several hundred dog bags at a cost of a penny each which they plan to hand out to dog owners in bundles of 50.

The bags will be available from the resource centre in Baltic Place and it is hoped the scheme will encourage people to bag up the poo and bin it.

The move follows increasing concerns about the levels of dog mess left on paths and open spaces around the village.

The parish council has received a number of complaints including one from a walking group who said its tours of the village were impeded by continually having to dodge the mess.

Dog mess hotspots include Marine Parade and Watchouse Hill.

Parish council chairman, Andy Jopp, said: "We thought that by offering free bags to people it would encourage them to pick up after their dogs.

"One of the worst areas in Marine Parade although dogs mess has been found on the paths at Watchouse Hill.

"The majority of dog owners are responsible people and do clean up after their pets, but there are a minority of people who don't and it is them who cause the problems."

The parish council is also considering spraying dog poo found around the village with fluorescent paint in a bid to raise awareness of the problem.

A similar scheme was run in Weston super Mare and along the Strawberry Line in Congresbury several years ago where the offending piles of mess were sprayed bright orange.