Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Reducing Pet Waste and Litter at the Augusta Canal National Heritage Area
Abstract
ongoing issue that negatively impacts the National Heritage Area. A “Take a Bag, Leave a Bag”
pet waste bag dispenser will be implemented at the Headgates, Water Pump Station, and Lake
Olmstead trailheads where there is the highest amount of pedestrian traffic. Along with the bag
dispenser, there will be educational signage posted at high traffic areas to encourage
compliance. This method will allow grocery bags that are typically used only once to be reused
for another purpose. This type of pet waste station relies on community involvement and sense
themselves and their pets. At first, the dispenser will be stocked with plastic bag donations at
regular intervals by the ACNHA summer intern, but over time, the dispenser is intended to be
This intervention is needed at the Augusta Canal National Heritage Area because of the
extent of the problem and its negative impact on the natural environment. Excess dog waste
disrupts the natural ecosystem, facilitates the spread of disease, pollutes water through run-off,
and negatively impacts the general cleanliness of the area. One important objective of a
National Heritage Area is to preserve the natural environment, so this intervention is intended
to contribute to that objective. The water quality issue is especially relevant in this case
because the ACNHA trail system lies directly in between two prominent bodies of water in
Augusta, the Augusta Canal and the Savannah River, which are the main sources of water for
the city. Disregarded pet waste near water sources contributes to higher than normal levels of
fecal coliform, which stress water treatment systems and decrease water quality.
Review of Literature
According to the EPA’s Source Water Protection Practices Bulletin, “dogs are significant
pollution, specifically in urban areas. This puts pet waste in the same EPA category as “oil,
grease and toxic chemicals from motor vehicles, pesticides and nutrients from lawns and
gardens, and heavy metals from roof shingles, motor vehicles and other sources”. 2
Although many argue that pet waste is a natural fertilizer, this is not the case due to its
composition, which makes dog waste is disruptive to the natural ecosystem. It does not make a
good fertilizer due to its high protein content and consequentially high acidity levels.3 It also has
the tendency to be contaminated with pathogens, such as bacteria and parasites.3 As a National
Heritage Area, we are committed to protecting and preserving the natural environment.
Another way that disregarded dog waste negatively impacts the environment is through being
carried into waterways through Stormwater runoff.3 This is an issue at the Augusta Canal
National Heritage Area because of the two waterways in direct vicinity to the Augusta Canal
Towpath. The city gets its drinking water from the Savannah River and the canal, so it is
important to reduce the amount of difficult to remove animal fecal pathogens. This helps to
Augusta, GA, Chandler, AZ, Los Angeles, CA, and Sacramento, CA have implemented dog
waste reduction programs based on the “Take a Bag, Leave a Bag” principle. Assessing the
factors that contributed to the success of these programs will provide insight on how to most
effectively implement a similar program in the ACNHA. Locally, this type of dispenser is found in
the Pendleton King “Bark Park” dog park.4 Their dispensers are constructed out of re-purposed
mailboxes and filled with reused grocery bags. Multiple evaluations of their plastic bag
dispensers determined that they are well maintained and used as intended. The city of
Chandler, AZ determined that the cost of the traditional waste stations and their maintenance
was not a cost-effective way to reduce dog waste in their parks.5 They realized the need to
explore less expensive methods due to the high cost of purchasing plastic dog waste bags. They
implemented an intervention that involves asking community members for plastic bag
donations. This intervention combines their need for dog waste stations and also the need to
reduce plastic bag pollution. This provides a cost-effective way to reduce pet waste in their
parks and also to reuse a prominent source of single use plastic pollution. Through
correspondence with the Chandler, AZ Community Services Planning Manager, Mickey Ohland,
we will be utilizing a blueprint of the model they use in their parks. Their model includes: a
galvanized post with bolts, the bag dispenser, pet waste ordinance sign, bag donation
instruction sign, and a decal on the dispenser that specifies not to place dog waste into the bag
donation dispenser.5 For our model, we are using a similar format, except with just one
The City of Los Angeles Stormwater Program hosted a pilot program called “Take a Bag,
Leave a Bag”. This program involved installing plastic bag dispensers that are restocked by
community members. The purpose of this program is “to encourage LA residents to pick up
after their dogs every time, to keep the parks cleaner and healthier for residents and dogs, to
reduce bacteria found in our local waterways and ocean, to reuse plastic bags and to involve
community members in an important program to prevent Stormwater pollution.”6
Sacramento county, California also implemented a similar dog waste reduction program,
using the plastic bag donation facility. The goal of their program is to “reduce the bacteria
found in local waterways caused by the improper disposal of pet waste in our parks and trails.”7
One issue with this method is that it relies on community members replenishing the
dispensaries with enough quantity and consistency to keep it stocked. The program in
Chandler, AZ found that they did not have any issues keeping the plastic bag dispensers
stocked. The City of Chandler found success in this program, but I could not find any conclusive
evidence to indicate that Los Angeles and Sacramento did as well. Through multiple visits to the
Pendleton King Bark Park, I determined that their dispensers helped to reduce incidences of
disregarded pet waste within the park. In the future, to ensure that the dispensers are
Needs Assessment
Through evaluating the trailheads over several weeks prior to implementation, it was
evident that the disregarded dog waste is an ongoing issue that needs to be addressed. In
addition to poor trail evaluations, community members have expressed concern about this
issue over time through calls to the ACNHA office and through the trail user surveys conducted
In order to improve the cleanliness of the environment and mitigate the negative
impacts of pet waste at the Augusta Canal National Heritage Area, the implementation of pet
waste clean-up containers at regular intervals throughout the park is necessary. The number of
trash cans and the frequency of trash pick-ups also need to be increased to address this issue.
Just like park users shouldn’t litter in public spaces, they also shouldn’t disregard their
pet’s waste as a form of social responsibility. Disregarded pet waste results in increased disease
transmission, the contamination of ground and surface water, and negatively impacts the
ecosystem. This issue will be addressed through implementation of dog waste clean-up stations
and education on why it matters. The dog waste bags and trashcans were previously
Increasing pet owners’ accountability, convenience and awareness of the issue will help
to encourage them to clean up after their pets. Increasing accountability and awareness of the
issue will be achieved through educational signage explaining the negative effects of
disregarded dog waste on the health of the environment and humans. Increasing convenience
will be achieved by increasing access to dog waste facilities out on the ACNHA trails. This will
hopefully alter the public norm so that more dog owners will comply and pick up after their
pets. Increasing community involvement through the “Take A Bag, Leave A Bag” dispensers has
The high incidence of disregarded pet waste at the Augusta Canal could be attributed to
a lack of accountability and awareness on the issue. A reason for this because of the low
visibility on the trails. If others don’t see, they may be less likely to take responsibility for it.
Another cause is that many dog walkers are simply unaware of the negative impact that excess
pet waste has on the natural environment. Through providing the resources for dog owners to
clean up after their pets and education to convince them why it is important, this project is
intended to increase the social norm of proper waste disposal on the ACNHA trails.
According to the Keep America Beautiful initiative, the main reasons that people litter
are because “they feel no sense of ownership, even though areas such as parks and beaches are
public property” and “they believe someone else – a park maintenance or highway worker –
will pick up after the litter has already accumulated.”8 Reasons behind why people litter can
also be applied to reasons why dog owners disregard their pet’s waste. The Keep America
Beautiful initiative focuses on behavior change and education as “the foundation for lasting
impact.”9 According to the results from Keep America Beautiful’s 2009 Littering Behavior in
America study, they found that “about 85% of littering is the result of individual attitudes.10
They also found that “changing individual behavior is key to preventing litter.”11,12 They found
that the further away from a receptacle the individual was, the greater the chance that they
would litter. Keep America Beautiful’s research indicated that the presence of litter increases
the chance of people adding to that litter by 15%.12 This same principle can be applied to
factors influencing whether or not dog owners take responsibility for their pet’s waste. Based
on these results, the number of trash cans and frequency of trash pick-up must be increased in
order to make a difference. Increasing convenience and awareness of the issue can be positive
influencing factors towards changing behavior and therefore reducing disregarded pet waste
The Augusta Animal Services promotes cleaning up after your animal on public lands or
private property not belonging to you. One of their slogans is: “If your animal poops while in a
public area, like a in park or in your neighborhood, please be considerate and scoop the
poop!”13 Many other jurisdictions in the state of Georgia and beyond have ordinances
mandating that pet owners are responsible for properly disposing of their pet’s waste. In places
like the Augusta Canal National Heritage Area, where pet waste is a noticeable and prominent
issue, the implementation of pet waste stations throughout the National Heritage Area is
needed in order to preserve the safety and cleanliness of the environment. This issue is
especially important because of the close proximity of the trails to local bodies of water, such as
the Augusta Canal and the Savannah River, which supply a portion of the drinking water for the
city of Augusta. Implementing dog waste disposal stations, along with informational and
educational signage will help to encourage pet owners to pick up after their pets.
I discussed concerns about the previous implementation with the ACNHA park ranger to
assess its effectiveness in the past. The previous stations were implemented about 12 years
ago. He attributed their issues to misuse, vandalism, and a lack of manpower. The misuse can
The overall goal of this project is to improve the cleanliness of the ACNHA and the
surrounding bodies of water through reducing disregarded pet waste. Another goal is to
increase the awareness of the negative environmental impacts of pet waste. More specifically,
one month after implementation, incidences of pet waste will decrease by at least 50% at each
of the problematic areas. The proportion of dog owners who pick up after their pets will
increase by 50%.
Plan of Action & Methodology
This project involves the implementation of dog waste disposal stations with containers
intended to distribute donated plastic bags. These containers will be affixed on a rod with an
informational and educational sign at the top. The stations will be implemented near trash cans
to increase convenience and reduce cost. The dispensers will be located at each of the main
trailheads: the Headgates, Water Pump Station, and Lake Olmstead. This project aims to
increase awareness of the dog waste clean-up stations through prominent signage and also
through including them on an interactive GPS map of the trails, which will be advertised on the
ACNHA website.
The signage will include information on how to use the dispenser and also why it is
important to pick up after your pet. The sign will be titled, “Pet Waste Bag Station”. (See
Appendix A)
Needed:
o Concrete
o Labor for implementation
Already implemented:
o Trash cans
Evaluation
Through the needs assessment, we found that there is an imminent need for improved
waste facilities at the Augusta Canal National Heritage Area, specifically for pet waste. In order
to evaluate the effectiveness of implementing pet waste clean-up stations and educational
signs, it is advantageous to measure the amount of pet waste present on the ground before and
after implementation. This will be done by conducting trail assessments at regular intervals
disregarded incidences of dog waste in the weeks prior to implementation. Dog waste on the
trails or directly adjacent to the trails will be recorded for this evaluation. The average number
C)
The trail assessments prior to implementation, and the survey results, will serve as a
formative evaluation, to show that the project is necessary and appropriate. While developing
the plan to implement dog waste clean-up stations, their need was found to be especially
critical through the quantification of disregarded dog waste. The identification of problematic
areas enforced the need for this program to be implemented at high traffic areas.
The process evaluation will be conducted in the weeks following implementation. This
evaluation will involve assessments of the dispensers, trash receptacles, and the trails. The
purpose of this evaluation is to determine if the dispensers are being used as intended. The
outcome evaluation will be conducted by comparing waste levels before and after
implementation of the pet waste facilities. Several trail and trailhead evaluations conducted
before and after implementation will be examined with the intention to determine cause and
effect of the pet waste facilities. An impact evaluation could be conducted by determining if the
reduction of pet waste from the implementation positively impacted the cleanliness and safety
of the environment. This would be a long-term evaluation that is unfeasible in the time frame
of this project.
To further enforce the need for a pet waste station at the ACNHA, I conducted a short
verbal survey to 11 dog walkers on the morning of June 8th. The purpose of this survey is to
determine current behaviors and to gauge interest for a dog waste station. I prefaced the
survey by introducing myself by saying “Hey there I am an intern with the Augusta Canal NHA
this summer. We are working to improve the ACNHA and to make it friendlier for dog walkers,
In the survey, I asked the following questions: Do you usually pick up after your dog? Do
you carry your own bags? Would a dog waste station at the Headgates increase the chance of
you picking up after your dog? If a “grocery bag donation” type dispenser were to be
implemented, would you donate bags? The answer choices were yes, no, and maybe or
sometimes. I got mostly positive feedback for implementing a donation-based dog waste bag
dispenser would result in a positive outcome. This survey further justifies the need for pet
waste disposal facilities at the Augusta Canal. This survey also reveals that the “Take A Bag,
Since the dispensers have not been implemented yet, we hope that the process
evaluation will determine that the community will stock the dispensers with bags as needed.
We hope that this evaluation will not find any indication of misuse of the dispensers or bags, an
example of which being foreign items placed in the dispensers. The outcome evaluation should
find that there was a reduction in incidences of disregarded pet waste after implementation of
the dispensers. If I could do this project over again, I would have the signs made sooner so that
the dispensers could be implemented earlier in the summer. This would allow more time for
the evaluation phase. As of July 26th, we are still waiting on the sign shop to finish producing
the signs. As soon as the signs are produced, we will implement the signs and dispensers.
References
1. EPA. Source Water Protection Practices Bulletin: Managing Pet and Wildlife Waste to Prevent
Contamination of Drinking Water. (2001, July).
2. United States Environmental Protection Agency. (2017, March 31). Nonpoint Source: Urban
Areas. Retrieved from https://www.epa.gov/nps/nonpoint-source-urban-areas
3. Erie County, NY Environment & Planning. (2015, September 28). If You Don't Stoop to Scoop -
It Happens. Retrieved from http://www2.erie.gov/environment/index.php?q=if-you-don039t-
stoop-scoop-it-happens
5. City of Chandler, AZ Park Operations Division. (n.d.). Dog Waste Stations and Plastic Bag
Recycling Project. Retrieved from http://www.chandleraz.gov/default.aspx?pageid=688
6. LA Stormwater. (n.d.). Take a Bag, Leave a Bag Program « City of Los Angeles Stormwater
Program. Retrieved from http://www.lastormwater.org/take-action/practice-good-
housekeeping/take-a-bag-leave-a-bag-program/
7. Sacramento County Stormwater Quality Program. (n.d.). The Scoop The Poop Program.
Retrieved from http://www.waterresources.saccounty.net/stormwater/Pages/scoop-the-
poop.aspx
10. Schultz, P. W., & Stein, S. R. (n.d.). Executive Summary: Litter in America, 2009 National
Litter Research Findings and Recommendations (Publication). Keep America Beautiful.
11. Litter in America. (2010, January). Key Findings: Littering Behavior (Rep.). Keep America
Beautiful.
12. Foodservice Packaging Institute, Keep America Beautiful, Inc., & National Restaurant
Association. (2015). Being a Good Neighbor: Guide to Reducing and Managing Litter (Rep.).
13. Augusta, GA Animal Services. (n.d.). Local Animal Ordinances. Retrieved from
https://www.augustaga.gov/2273/Local-Animal-Ordinances
Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C
Before After
Lake Olmstead Trailhead
5.25 1
Water Pump Station Trailhead
8.5 2
Headgates at Savannah3.5
Rapids 3
3. Would a dog waste station at the Headgates increase the chance of you picking up after
your dog?
a. Yes- 7
b. No- 2
c. Maybe- 2
4. If a “grocery bag donation” type dispenser was to be implemented, would you donate
bags?
a. Yes- 4
b. No- 3
c. Maybe- 4