But the problem of dog fouling in Fife is so severe, the council have decided to turn their cameras on pet owners, who face a £40 standard fine if caught. Asked if cracking down on dog fouling was an appropriate use of the thermal cameras, a council spokeswoman defended the policy. She added: “I think you will find if you check any residents’ survey, you will see dog poo is a top issue.”
Police CCTV van operator Nick St Aubyn said: “It sounds a bit disgusting but these cameras also detect heat – so there really is no dispute if the dog has fouled or not.” The cameras can zoom in to capture evidence from two football pitch lengths away. Council environment enforcer Jim Beveridge also revealed that the wardens need to take extra safety measures.
He said: “It could get dangerous when issuing a fine. People don’t like to be charged so we wear stab-proof vests because you never know what people are carrying. There is no excuse for people turning away, ignoring and failing to pick up their dog’s mess.” Fife Tory MSP Murdo Fraser backed the use of cameras, adding: “Hopefully, the extra measures will catch irresponsible dog owners red-handed.”
3 comments:
This one line in the article tells you all you need to know about police priorities today: "The equipment is normally used by police to catch criminals and dangerous drivers."
Obviously real police work is too much effort these days. A crime is a crime if it makes the clear up rate look good. This seems to be the order of the day now.
I dogsit, and am regularly appalled by the amount of dog poop that does not get picked up around my neighborhood.
One of my pet peeves are the obnoxious people who hide their laziness behind fake concern for the environment by saying they refuse to clean after their dogs because it's such a minor (and "naturally decomposing") thing. At least compared to the real problem which are the human beings who ruin the environment with car exhaust and litter and broken glass etc. They say it like they actually think they are making a valid point, that as long as there is litter, dog turds don't count. Such idiotic attitude makes me furious. Don't they realise there are also equally moronic people who feel they can throw carbage on the ground because there are already "naturally decomposing" piles everywhere, so a little bit of litter doesn't count?
PS. I've never had to scrape a candy wrapper off my shoe while fighting my gag reflex.
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