Fuengirola focuses on faeces

FUENGIROLA is about to up its fight against mess, local Mayor Ana Mula has announced, and the council has launched a new campaign aimed at dog owners.

In an aim to end the problem of dog mess on public streets, letters are being sent out to all registered pet owners in town, of which there are almost 16,000, stressing that although most meet municipal bylaws on removing mess from the streets, there is a minority who fail to meet the rules and cause difficulties keeping the town clean.

“Dog mess on the streets is a matter which is brought up at every residents’ meeting I attend,” Mula said.

“The problem has got out of hand in some areas, meaning we need people to collaborate with us to solve it and keep the town clean,” the mayor explained.

Article 18 of the Municipal Cleaning Bylaw states that ‘excrements must be removed from the public street immediately and placed in rubbish containers within perfectly closed bags.’

Failure to meet these regulations can lead to fines of €75 or more.

The letters will also urge pet owners to update their details on the animal register. The list was started in 1996 and contains information on pets and their owners. To date there are 15,787 pets registered including 13,325 dogs, 2,178 cats, 75 ferrets and 209 animals of other types.

“The workers in charge of delivering the letters will also ask the owners some questions for the register, or owners can register or update their info by emailing censoanimal@fuengirola.org,” the mayor explained.

Meanwhile on the streets the Local Police force has also geared up its fight against faeces and four owners were recently fined for not picking up after their pooches, Mula reported.