See which street in Telford and Wrekin has most dog poo complaints as spray paint campaign launches
A shaming campaign to tackle the "widespread" and rising issue of dog waste across Telford and Wrekin has begun in Newport.
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Telford & Wrekin Council launched the campaign in a bid to tackle the rising rates of dog waste being left across the borough.
The number of incidents reported to and cleared up the council has risen by 36 per cent in the last 12 months, up from 823 to 1,119.
Clearing up after our four-legged friends and their irresponsible owners has cost the council around £15,000 in taxpayers' money.
The council's new campaign has been launched in Broomfield Road in Newport - the area with the highest number of reported incidents.
As well as installing new signs and increasing patrols and CCTV monitoring, the council has begun to spray paint the unwanted mess with bright orange paint - leaving it on the ground for two days.
"Hopefully, those people who aren't picking up after their dog will see that somebody is watching them," said Councillor Richard Overton.
Enforcement officers will also be speaking to dog owners about the issue, and ensuring they have bags available to pick up after their pets - if not, a fine will be issued.
As part of the campaign, residents are also being asked to report when they see someone failing to clean up, with the council assuring the public that dog fouling offences are being treated seriously.
Councillor Overton added: “We need public support to identify the few culprits who do not think it’s their responsibility and to report it if they see it so we can build a complete picture of where this is becoming an issue.”
Residents are asked not to challenge other owners but to provide details including, date, time, location, description/identity of the dog/owner and as much information as possible about the incident and any information regarding the offender.
Newport Councillor Peter Scott has long been calling for more to be done to tackle "irresponsible dog owners" who are failing to pick up after their four-legged friends.
The Newport councillor first launched an anti-dog poo campaign back in 2016 after finding a whopping 136 'instances' behind houses on Wrekin Avenue in the town.
While he said numbers had declined, they were now back on the rise and, in August, he was calling for a borough-wide campaign to tackle the issue.
Telford & Wrekin Council said reports could be made and pictures uploaded on the MyTelford app, or anonymously phoned in to a confidential council hotline on 01952 388800.
