The Courier & Advertiser (Fife Edition)
Plans to phase out dog poo bins cause a stink
Dog waste bins in Perth and Kinross are being dumped. The surprise move emerged in a survey of how well-served Courier Country is with dedicated bins for dog excrement.
We asked councils how many dog waste bins they have and when they are emptied. News the red bins are being removed in Perth and Kinross is a shock.
Dog-walking businesses fear it will add to the already out-of-control issue of poo-filled bags just being left on the ground by irresponsible owners.
We asked four local councils for a poo bin count and emptying regime.
It follows the revelation that fewer than half of dog owners in Tayside and Fife are paying fines for not picking up dog poo – with one even giving false details to escape punishment.
Angus Council was the only authority to give a breakdown of waste bins.
“All public bins in Angus can be used for the disposal of dog faeces – that currently comprises 877 dual-purpose litter bins and 591 dog poo bins.
“The frequency with which they are emptied varies according to usage.
“We welcome any input from our communities that highlights where they feel a bin might be better located.
“All dog owners should be responsible and clean up after their pet.
“Not to do so is an offence and they can be issued with a fixed penalty notice of £80, rising to £100 if not paid within 28 days, or the offence can be reported to the procurator fiscal.
“We also encourage people to report any incidents of dog fouling to us at the earliest opportunity. This can be done using our online reporting service.”
Dundee City Council said: “There are nearly 1,500 dog waste bins across Dundee on four collection routes that span the eight council wards.
“Bins are emptied up to three times a week, depending on location.
“Dog owners can also dispose of their pet’s waste in general litter bins as well.”
Fife Council said: “There are nearly 900 dog bins across Fife. The majority are emptied weekly but frequency varies.”
Perth and Kinross said: “There are 1,300 litter bins in the Perth and Kinross area, all of these litter bins can be used to dispose of dog poo.
“Dedicated dog poo bins are in the process of being phased out across the area.”
As a follow-up, the council was asked how many red bins it had and when the decision was taken to phase them out. It did not respond.
Two Perth dog walking firms were completely unaware of the decision and said it was a backward step.
Fran Owen has operated Walk in the Park for six years.
She thinks binning the red boxes is a disaster.
“If anything, I think there should be more dog poo bins, not less,” said Fran.
“So to take them away completely is the wrong decision, in my view.
“I’m in a dog walking group chat and this hasn’t been mentioned.
“If it had come up I think it’s definitely something we would have been talking about.”
She says dog walking businesses are already wrongly blamed for not picking up after pets.
“We sometimes get quite a bad name but, if anything, it is us who are picking up poo bags left by others.
“If I see a bag I’ll pick it up and take it to the nearest bin.
“In some of the popular areas there are a good number of poo bins, but you can never have too many.”
And she says general litter bins need to be clearly signed.
“If the bin isn’t marked as being able to take dog poo, it puts me off,” said Fran. “I wouldn’t want someone to see me putting a bag in a bin that doesn’t have a sticker and thinking I’m just doing it because I can’t be bothered to take it to a poo bin.”