Alderman appeals for clean-up

Mr Middleton said he has been receiving increasing number of calls and complaints from residents in the village about the amount of fouling being allowed to take place by irresponsible dog owners.

The Alderman said that the problem had become “serious” with people barely able to walk on some footpaths.

“In Newbuildings at the minute there is a lot of dog fouling and over the weekend in particular it was very busy for me in terms of the number of calls and complaints I received,” he said.

Mr Middleton said he had already been in contact with the Environmental Health Department at the Council to speak to officers there about the problem.

“I have appealed to them to provide more dedicated dog foul bins along popular walking routes in the village, which should encourage those walking their dogs to pick up after their pets, but my attention has also been drawn to the ongoing problem of people allowing their dogs to stray and there are also a number of irresponsible dog owners out walking their dogs who do not clean up after them.

“Not only are these people creating an environmental health problem, they are also getting responsible dog owners a bad name, and I intend to follow this up with the dog wardens’ office and with the environmental health officers at the Council to see what can be done to step up monitoring and target people who walk away from their responsibilities.

“Not only is it unpleasant to get dog foul on your footwear, but children out playing on public greens are at risk from infection which could leave them blind. I am calling on dog owners in Newbuildings to act responsibly and take a poop scoop or bag with them,” he said.