Walker gathers 183 dog bags at beauty spots
DISCARDED dog poo has become a major issue at a West Cornwall beauty spot, according to a keen walker from Redruth.
Ian Penna and his long term girlfriend Mel Mallett enjoy regular weekend walks in the Upton Towans, Gwithian and Godrevy area.
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Ian Penna with some of the bags of dog poo that he has picked up from the dunes at Gwithian
But recently, they have noticed a startling increase in the number of dog poo bags dumped in the area by irresponsible pet owners.
So on Monday, Ian, who is a contemporary artist, decided to bring the matter to public attention in his own unique way.
He took a one-mile walk around the Upton Towans area and collected 107 discarded dog poo bags.
He did a similar exercise at Gwithian on Tuesday morning and collected a further 76.
Later that day, he laid all 183 bags out in a line across the dunes and photographed them. He then took them to the Upton Towans nature reserve sign and photographed them, before removing them.
He said: "It's a new phenomenon – dog poo in plastic bags, wherever you walk. People seem to be going out of their way to put these things anywhere but in the dog bins.
"We enjoy walking in what I call one of Cornwall's best beauty spots – the Upton Towans area is meant to be a nature reserve.
"But what you find is not very pleasant. It's in different coloured bags – orange, yellow, white, even supermarket shopping bags.
"It's up trees, under bushes, beside the path, on the path, everywhere except in the bins. It's unsightly and unhealthy. It's not just Gwithian; it's everywhere I go at the moment.
"Admittedly, there aren't enough bins; there are two bins in the main car park, but there are none on the actual dunes.
"People should be responsible enough to carry the bags back to the car park and put them in the bins that are provided."
Andy Cummins, from Surfers Against Sewage, said his organisation had no issue with responsible owners taking their dogs onto beaches.
He added: "But where this does come into conflict with one of our campaigns is marine litter.
"If you wrap dog poo up in a plastic bag and then throw it away, then you get all the problems associated with plastic bags.
"Entanglement, ingestion of plastics; it can kill wildlife, it's unsightly, it's terrible. Wrap dog poo in a plastic bag and yes it's unsightly, but it can also be around for hundreds of years."
A spokesman for Kerrier Council, which is not responsible for the Godrevy/Gwithian area, said that it was questionable legally whether it was a dog fouling issue or a littering issue, but it was certainly an offence that would be subject to a fixed penalty fine if proven.
No one from Penwith Council was available for comment at the time of going to press.
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by lee, hayle
Friday, March 27 2009, 5:40PM
“I think it's great that Ian has brought this up and I hope dog walkers who leave their pet's mess behind think twice. Since Ian picked up all those bags I haven't had to dodge dog mess once or going running home with it stuck in my shoes and soiling my carpets.
It's a shame he had to pick the bags up as it's the dog walkers' responsibility and I think they're lazy,”
by Linda M. Sneve, Norway
Friday, March 13 2009, 2:09PM
“Way to go Ian! :)”
by mary, hayle
Friday, March 13 2009, 7:35AM
“The best article and action i have heard about in years. Well done! It made me feel a bit more sane as i frequently clear up paths of covered in dog poo and put up signs asking for them to be kept clean - obviously to no avail. These people who trash our beautiful pathways are a very stubborn bunch. Only yesterday i picked up 17 huge dog poos from the stunning path up to Trencrom from the little car park - admittedely there is no dog bin there - my mission today was to ask the council 'why not?'. I actually rang the afternoon show on radio cornwall a month or so ago to say i wanted to form a pressure group to do something about this problem - lobbying the council - getting tougher on foulers- educating irresponsible dog owners etc - one person contacted me and we hope to start something - but is isnt easy as its largely a hidden foe, so to speak. if anyone out there is interested i'd love to hear from them - it feels that maybe the time is finally right for us to to take greater care of our beautiful heritage, especially in these hard times. i dont know if i can put my no or not? my particular area of concern is the towans as i run there everyday with my two dogs, porth kidney and basically anywhere theres a footpath which people should be using but arn't cos of the mess.”
by Sally, Praze
Thursday, March 12 2009, 10:47PM
“We've stopped taking our dog to Gwithian because of the mess. We always pick up whatever parcels he leaves behind and with him weighing in at 10 stone he leaves big parcels! Even if it means using 2 or 3 bags we pick up everything. We wouldn't want our children to walk through anything thats been left behind so why should other people. We have shouted to people at Godrevy before saying their dog had done something and would they like a bag only to watch them bag it and throw the bag into the bushes! Our philosophy has always been if you don't want to clean up dog mess, don't have a dog! And as Ness from Redruth says the same goes for the people who leave their rubbish all over the Towans. It really does make you wonder what their houses look like!”
by Paula, Newquay
Thursday, March 12 2009, 9:43PM
“Well done Ian for highlighting the problem!! I think this is a problem everywhere! When ever we go for a walk my 3 year old runs ahead and is constantly turning round and saying "mind the poo Mummy!!" What a shame we have to be looking down all the time instead of enjoying our beautiful beaches and coastal walks!!!”