Irresponsible dog owners who allow their dogs to foul public areas in Caerphilly county borough are being told to ‘Pick Up or Pay Up!’.
Caerphilly County Borough Council’s ‘Pick Up or Pay Up!’ scheme aims to raise awareness of dog fouling and littering issues, by highlighting the importance of taking pride in our communities and keeping our environment clean and green.
Enforcement Officers took part in a ‘flagging up’ exercise along a 100 metre stretch of public land recently, to illustrate the number of people who still feel it is acceptable to allow their dogs to foul public areas and fail to pick it up.
Flags were placed into the ground on the site of dog fouling incidents, bearing the words ‘Warning – an irresponsible dog owner stopped here’, in the anticipation that it will embarrass irresponsible dog owners into acting responsibly.
Cllr Lyn Ackerman, cabinet member for the environment said, “The majority of dog owners do take their environmental responsibilities seriously and clear up after their dog, however there is still a small minority who do not cooperate.
“It is this small minority of people that we aim to engage with so they realise that they will either pick up their dog’s mess, or pay the price for failing to do so”.
Between April 1st 2007 and March 31st 2009, Caerphilly County Borough Council issued a total of 189 fixed penalty notices of £75 for dog fouling. Where any fixed penalty is not paid, the matter is pursued through the courts, where a fine can be imposed of up to £1,000.
To report dog fouling in Caerphilly county borough, please call Caerphilly StreetPride on 01443 866 566 or visit the StreetPride page.
