After a protracted 30-minute session at council, councillors ultimately voted unanimously to include the option of a trial of waste bag dispensers in off-leash areas in the forthcoming community consultation about the Draft Animal Management Policy.*
Next step consultation
To be clear, Council did not vote to have a dog waste bag scheme or even a trial; they voted to include the idea in the forthcoming consultation.
This was significant because officers had recommended against providing bags at council expense.
Expensive and ineffective, say officers
The officers had warned that a trial could cost approximately $135,000, with ongoing distribution up to $500,000 per annum. They also reported that when bags were previously available, there was little reduction in dog waste in off-leash areas.
Responding to councillors questions, council officers said most of the anticipated costs were due to the labour involved in maintaining the supply in the dispensers.
Earlier in the meeting, dog-owning community members said the dog-owning groups were willing to help support the trial by distributing bags.
Respecting previous feedback
Moving a motion to include the option of a trial of waste-bag distribution in the consultation, Cr. Alex Makin said it was important to respect the previous community feedback.
He noted that the previous council asked officers to investigate dispensing dog waste bags because community feedback suggested it was a worthy idea.
“We should respect that feedback,” he said.
Bags of cash
Understandably, the idea of allocating $500,000 annually to the budget was significant. One councillor, presumably in jest or maybe sarcasm, suggested the money slashed from the St Kilda Festival could pay for it. (Yes, it was a curious debate, with one councillor revealing that his “well-behaved” dog had urinated as a very young puppy while visiting the council offices).
However, it was seriously suggested that a hike in pet registration fees could be used to help pay for waste-bag distribution.
The offer of community involvement in the distribution scheme was also appreciated and supported.
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