Edinburgh City Council proclaimed a recent "hard hitting" campaign to encourage dog owners to poop-scoop in the north of the city saw complaints drop by 80%.
Dog fouling has long been one of the big complaints from Edinburgh residents. Among the tactics used in the 3 week campaign to tackle the problem, were vivid pictures of dog mess which were put through resident’s front doors.
Tongue-in-cheek, chalk stencils were also painted onto pavements, local residents received free poop scoops, and posters were displayed in schools, libraries and doctor’s surgeries.
Environmental wardens and police officers were out in force to remind walkers to pick up after their four-legged friends.
The campaign was one of several anti-litter initiatives which have been running all over the city.
During the initiative, 5 Fixed Penalty Notices were issued for open space dog fouling, and 8 were issued for litter.
“This campaign has been a great success and shows that people respond well to shocking and hard-hitting tactics," said Councillor Robert Aldridge, Environmental Leader.
George Gordon, chair of Granton and District Community Council and the Clean, Green and Safe Action Group, said: “This campaign was a great success and the local community has been very responsive. In fact, there was a significant change on dog fouling in the whole area. This project was all about making a real difference in the street and the Environmental Wardens and Police worked hard to achieve this great result.”
In October, the Council ran a week-long anti-litter initiative on Rose Street which found that cigarette litter decreased by 70 per cent during that week and two weeks after the project.