IRRESPONSIBLE dog owners in Flintshire will be slapped with a £75 fine if they allow their pets to foul the street.
Following a lengthy public consultation, the council has opted to introduce a new dog control order in an effort to combat the problem of dog mess across the county.
The new rules are set to come into force on Thursday, December 3.
Community leaders have welcomed the decision.
Connah’s Quay councillor Bernie Attridge said: “This is very welcome news. I have got three kids myself and we have got a big play area behind us and the amount of times they come back covered in dog muck...
“There are dog bins everywhere now, so there is no excuse for it. Some people just don’t care and they deserve everything that’s coming to them.”
Cllr Tony Sharps, executive member for environment, added: “We have been working on this for the past 10 years.
“It’s one of the worst most, disgusting habits that dog owners can allow their dogs to do and I hope that police can prosecute as many people as possible.”
Under the new rules, owners caught not clearing up after their dogs will have the opportunity to accept the fixed penalty rather than being dragged through the courts, where they face being fined up to £1,000.
If payment is made within seven days of being fined, the penalty will be reduced to £50.
Enforcement will be carried out by specialist council officers as well as the police, including community support officers.
All officers will also be given the power to serve fixed penalty notices for littering offences, where the same penalties will apply.
The order will apply to any publicly or privately-owned land, including pavements and grass verges where the public are entitled to walk.
People registered blind or who have other debilitating disabilities will be exempt from the order.
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