Dog beaches Mornington Peninsula: Poo at Camerons Bight, Blairgowrie
Disgusted walkers were shocked with the state of a Blairgowrie beach. You won’t believe how many dog poos were found.
South East
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A “shit fight” is underway on the Mornington Peninsula after 109 dog droppings were collected in just 15 minutes from one beach.
The bucket of poo was gathered by two people from a 500m stretch of sand at Cameron’s Bight, Blairgowrie as part of Beach Patrol’s Spring Clean Your Patch event on Sunday.
Rye environmentalist Josie Jones was not surprised by the shocking result.
“It really is a shit fight at the moment. People aren’t taking responsibility for their dogs,” she said.
However Peninsula Dog Owners association president Trevor Robinson said he regularly visited the off leash dog beach at Cameron’s Bight and found it to be clean.
“I was there three days ago (Sunday) and I only saw one old poo,” he said.
“I think someone is stirring the pot. Not everybody likes dog beaches.”
Ms Jones has been collecting litter from the foreshore daily for 14 years and said she had never seen so much dog faeces along the Mornington Peninsula foreshore.
“I see turds left on the sand and all along the Bay Trail as well as – and I really hate this – full dog poo bags flung into trees and bushes.”
She said community anger about the issue had escalated during lockdown.
“Some people are so sick of finding poo on their nature strip they have put signs on their fences warning dog walkers to pick up after their pet.”
Ms Jones said middle aged women were the worst offenders.
She has watched the same woman flick her dog’s poo into the bushes along the Bay Trail at Rye every day for weeks.
“It’s exactly the same spot. There were about 30 poos there last time I looked.”
White Cliffs to Camerons Bight Foreshore Reserve Committee of Management foreshore manager Greg Powell said the majority of dog walkers did the right thing.
He said Mornington Peninsula Shire rangers now had the power to fine people for failing to clean up after their pet while on Crown land.
“In the past people knew that council officers couldn’t fine them so they ignored warnings,” Mr Powell said.
“About 12 months ago the council signed a memorandum of understanding with Department of Environment, Land, Water and Planning giving them the power to enforce the Domestic Animals Act.
“Since then they have been issuing fines.”
Mornington Peninsula Shire Council has been contacted.
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