At the June meeting of Mayo County Council, Fine Gael councillor Jarlath Munnelly proposed that Mayo County Council introduce a byelaw making it mandatory for anyone who takes a dog into a public place in Mayo to, at all times, carry a bag for the purpose of collecting dog excrement.
Cllr Munnelly claimed that Mayo is in the throes of a dog fouling epidemic. From every part of the county, the general public are reporting the same issue: people's enjoyment of public amenities and public places are being ruined by irresponsible dog owners who do not clean up after their dog.
Cllr Munnelly said: "Nobody in Mayo needs me to tell them how much of a problem this issue has become. Clearly, we need a change of people's behaviour to get people to clean up after their dogs."
Cllr Munnelly’s motion proposes the creation of a byelaw, which would empower authorised members of Mayo County Council to request people who are walking their dogs in a public place to carry a bag. Failure to comply with this byelaw would result in a fine, which Cllr. Munnelly suggested should be set at a minimum of €500. He claimed that this might result in more people cleaning up after their dogs.
The Killala based councillor concluded: "I don’t think that this will solve everything, but perhaps by ensuring that people carry a bag, for fear of being fined, more people will then use it to clean up after their dog. This could be enforced by authorised personnel from Mayo County Council, such as litter and dog wardens."
The motion received broad support at the meeting and will now be referred to the Environment Strategic Policy Committee of Mayo County Council.
