Councils seeking bins for dog dirt

Etherley Parish Council has enlisted the support of parish councils in Teesdale to try and have dog bins provided.

The chairman of Etherley Parish Council, Martin Clark, said he was overwhelmed by the support for the scheme.

He said: "Etherley Parish Council has requested this service on numerous occasions and decided to ask for the support of other parish councils in the dale.

"We are delighted and grateful for all the positive replies we have received from the numerous parish councils that have responded - I would like to thank them for their time in supporting this issue.

"I am disappointed that the recently-released Teesdale Corporate Plan fails to include the commitment to provide dog waste bins, despite the fact that the plan states that dog waste is a key concern for residents.

"We hope that Teesdale District Council appreciates how important this matter is to local people and can respond positively to our request."

The campaign is being supported by SureStart Teesdale and several parents have set up a Dog Dirt Action Group.

Gillian Quille, programme manager for SureStart Teesdale, said: "Young children are the most susceptible to the diseases carried in dog faeces, but also it's very unpleasant to clean from shoes and buggy wheels. We want to raise awareness of the problem and, while we think dog bins are a good idea, it's also just as easy for people to pick it up and take it home."

Teesdale District Council's head of streetcare, Chris Tomlinson, said he was aware that people wanted dog bins, but cost was a major factor.

He said: "We've probably got the lowest income for a council in the country. These bins cost two or three hundred pounds, and then it's the cost of installing and emptying them

"It's something we'd love to do and I'm not discounting it.

"The Corporate Plan is for three years and this year we'll sit down and decide our priorities for the coming year and see if we can afford dog bins."