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EPA keeps eye on messy pet owners

An Environmental Protection Administration official demonstrates methods and tools for picking up dog droppings at a press conference in Taipei yesterday. PHOTO: WANG MIN-WEI, TAIPEI TIMES

Dog owners will have to start picking up their pets' droppings or face the wrath of the Environmental Protection Administration (EPA).

The administration announced yesterday that 328 cases of dog owners failing to clean up their pets' droppings in public places have been prosecuted nationwide in the past two months, while 1,997 warnings were issued over the same period.

According to Eddy Liu (劉瑞祥), a representative of the EPA's sanitation and toxic substance management department, the most offenses occurred in Taipei City, with approximately two-thirds of all cases being reported in the city.

The environmental protection bureau of the Tainan City Government, on the other hand, issued the most warnings. The city issued a total of 823 warnings over the past two months.

EPA officials yesterday also demonstrated how dog owners can use various tools, including small shovels, old newspapers and plastic bags to clean up after their pets.

They also demonstrated how droppings can be effectively removed using these tools.

According to the Waste Disposal Act (廢棄物清理法), the excrement of poultry and livestock in public places should be removed by their owners and managers. The same law also stipulates that owners can be fined NT$1,200 (US$37.5) to NT6,000 when the poultry or livestock they raise affects sanitation. They can be fined repeatedly if the offenses persist.

The administration launched a national campaign to clean up dog droppings earlier this year after a Japanese couple surnamed Nakamura, who had participated in the "long stay" tourism program in Nantou County, complained that Taiwan was a place "where dog dropping can be seen everywhere."

Liu said that some cities and counties have come up with creative methods to catch offenders or keep their streets clean. The Taipei City Government, for example, has formed a squad that will station members in public places to scout for offenders.

In Tainan, inspectors driving modified vehicles will regularly patrol residential areas and pick up dog droppings.

Liu said that the administration would ask the Council of Agriculture to manage stray dogs more effectively to help ease the problem of dog droppings.

Currently, the council is the administrative authority responsible for animals and pets, whereas the EPA becomes involved when the animals or their excrement affect environmental sanitation.

In March, the administration officially ordered the environmental protection bureaus in each county and city to intensify inspection efforts.

Since May, they are required to report on their performance to the administration every month.
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