- This video gives a brief breakdown of where household animal owners should dispose of their pet's poop. The correct answer is the Trash bin (whether it's black or brown) as opposed to the Organics bin (Green).
- Kern County Public Works manager Chuck Magee said the purpose for asking pet owners to throw their dog poop away in the black bin is so that it doesn't contaminate the organic material in the green bin that will eventually be turned into compost. Dog poop is technically compostable, but it has the potential to be a vector for diseases like E. Coli and Giardia.
- To kill the diseases in dog poop through composting, the material must be heated to high temperatures for extended periods, in a sense sanitizing it.
- Magee said while it is feasible, the potential for disease is still prevalent and he asks that pet owners dispose of their pet's waste properly to help cut down on decontamination.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
If you're a dog owner, I'm certain you're familiar with this dog poop bags. I'm saying, well, you're Shafter neighborhood report and when it comes to dog poop, which trash bin do you put it in? Do you put it in the black bin or do you put it in the green bin? The answer might actually surprise you.
"Horse manure, cow manure. They know this is a feedstock for compost because they've seen it, heard it, talked about it, that kind of thing," said Chuck Magee. "The difference is those animals, the cows, the horses, they only eat grass and organic material, they don't eat proteins. That is where the problems come in.
Household pet poop has the chance to contain various diseases like E coli and giardia, which if put into the green bin has the potential to spread those diseases across various avenues, like the compost that gets created from the organic waste that's supposed to go in that green bin.
Well, hold on let's get back to the logs on the ground.
What's the importance of picking up dog poop in the first place? According to Nick Riddick, Shafter Animal Control Manager, it is mostly about common courtesy, but it is also illegal to leave where it's plopped
"It's your animal, it's your responsibility. People need to pick up after their own animals. We've made it very easy for a lot of people to you know pick up after their animals," said Riddick. "You'd probably be hard-pressed to find a dog park, or a park in general, that doesn't have bags for cleaning up defecation."
Okay, well now that we have it picked up, what bins should your dog poop go in? According to McGee, it should go in the black bin which adds to the landfill because it is the safest place for it.
"It has so many sale — failsafes put into that construction. So, nothing comes out of that hurts the environment. Whereas composting is designed to take that material, modify it back, so that goes back into the environment. So, if we can remove potential harmful contaminants through disposal as opposed to composting, we're always going to push that," said Magee.
Stay in Touch with Us Anytime, Anywhere:
