Walnut Mayor Urges Residents to Pick Up After Pets

The city of Walnut wants to remind residents to scoop up the poop when walking their dogs in public areas and parks.

Mayor Antonio "Tony" Cartagena said Wednesday during the City Council meeting that he gets calls from residents concerned about pet waste not getting picked up.

An animal nuisance in the Los Angeles County code mandates that owners pick up their pet's waste from all public places and walking areas for sanitary and health reasons, he said.  The city has put stations at all parks with Zero-Waste biodegradable bags to put the waste in and sealed containers where it can be properly disposed of, he added.

"It is important for our community members to know we have an ordinance for this," he said.

Cartagena read some facts from the city's website about the hazards of leaving waste behind.

Pet waste is a "major pollutant and contaminant of water supplies," according to the city's website. 

If it is not picked up from parks, sidewalks, and lawns and disposed of properly, it can get into the county's storm drain system by rain or irrigation water.  The untreated water can get into the San Gabriel Valley and into the ocean.

"Some sources estimate that 1/3 of all water contamination is a result of dog waste entering streams and leaching into underground well water," Cartagena read from the city's website.

"We are asking the help of the community members," he said.