The Location of Dog Poo Bins

At a recent site meeting between the Parish Council and South Northants Homes, a potential site for a dog poo bin was suggested by South Northants Homes. This was discussed at the last parish council meeting, and it was decided that as the bins had been in location for about a year, it was probably time to review their location.

So.... dog poo......

Dog poo bin history

The six dog poo bins were paid for and installed by The Parish Council about a year ago, as a response to the increasing levels of um... poo, around the village.

Certainly on the forum there are regular discussions about the problem of dog poo, for example here, here and here.

The Parish Council then pay a company (I am not sure of the exact figure but it is about £1000 per year) to empty and dispose of the waste.

The other rubbish bins around the village are emptied by the Council as part of the fortnightly rubbish collection (free of charge as far as the Parish Council are concerned).

Where are they located?

I have just spent a happy hour wandering around the village with the dog to find them and to take pictures. Here are the locations of all six of the bins:

Now my personal issue with some of these locations are that the bins are situated right next to existing bins. As a responsible dog owner, I pick up the poo and then carry it around until I find a bin. I don't really care if that bin is an official dog poo bin, or a normal waste bin, or even someone's black bin (but only the day before a collection!) - a bin is a bin, and I just want to get shot of it! Does it really matter if it is a poo bin or just a rubbish bin?

It seems to me that the Parish Council could relocate these bins to somewhere where there are no bins at all.

Responsible dog owners

This of course raises another issue - does having big red dog poo bins encourage people to use them when perhaps a normal rubbish bin doesn't? Personally I don't think so - you are either a responsible dog owner, or not.

Does having more bins make a difference? Again personally I don't think so - when I go on long hikes, my dog always seems to choose the moment we are still in village bounds, but away from any bin to do her business. That poo then gets a nice trek across the countryside until I reach the next village - and hopefully a bin (again any bin will do).

Do the bins work?

There is a bit of a problem measuring the success of the dog bins. As an example, whereas I used to put 100% of my bags in standard rubbish bins, it is now 50%/50% - this usage of the new poo bins does not indicate more poo is being picked up, but only that the new bins are on my route. So how can the Parish Council tell whether the money spent equates to less poo around the village or just less poo in normal rubbish bins?

I guess the only way is to see if there is a reduction in poo. Has there been a reduction of poo around the village? Personally I think there has - generally there does seem to be less around, but I am not exactly counting them!

Have your say?

To give the Parish Council some feedback on where we think the village dog poo bins should be located, I am pleased to announce the launch of the "Hartwell Village Dog Poo Bin Location Consultation Interactive App" (which has been nicknamed "Poop App", which is a bit snappier).

You can find the app here: http://www.hartwellvillage.com/groups/Hartwell-Community-Website/Poop-App

On the page, you will see a map with the location of all six poo bins marked. You then simply click and drag the markers to any locations of your choice. Once you are happy with these locations click the "SAVE" button, and your locations will be saved. We will then collate all this information, and will pass the results onto the Parish Council (and of course on this site)!

If you have any other comments about dog poo and dog poo bins, feel free to post them on the forum!

daylight_gambler