Zero fines handed out for dog fouling in Donegal in 2022

Data gathered by National Council for the Blind Ireland BI as part of our Clear Our Paths campaign shows that just 82 dog fouling fines were handed out by local councils over the course of 2022, with Donegal County Council one of 17 that handed out zero fines.

Information, provided by the local councils at the request of NCBI, showed Kerry County Council had the highest number of fines with 27 and the council reported that there were two convictions related to those fines.

Dog fouling is a huge issue for people who are blind or vision impaired who use our footpaths daily. A recent NCBI survey showed that it was the third most frequent unexpected obstacle encountered by respondents. Not only can dog fouling cause a slip hazard, but it can also be distressing for white cane users whose canes are often dirtied by faeces.

Cars parked on footpaths emerged as the number one obstacle faced by respondents to the survey. NCBI recently learned that over 19,000 fines were handed out in 2022 for issues around street and inappropriate parking. Donegal County Council handed out 389 parking fined in 2022..

Parking inappropriately, especially on footpaths, causes a serious hazard for people who are blind or vision impaired. If a footpath is blocked, people with sight loss may be injured by walking into traffic to get around a vehicle, injured walking into the vehicle, or injured by stepping off kerbs in unfamiliar locations.

NCBI said it recognises local councils’ efforts and challenges to support clear paths in their communities.

Aaron Mullaniff, Chief Services Officer with NCBI said: “ This new data we have gathered is a means to explain to the public the dangers of dog fouling on footpaths and the dangers of cars parked on footpaths. Firstly, the dog fouling data shows that councils can’t be expected to police the issue alone. It’s impractical to think that wardens could observe every single dog owner who doesn’t clean up after their dog and then issue them with a fine. There needs to be significant effort from the public to clean up after their pets in the first instance. It’s imperative that we all work to make our footpaths usable for all members in our communities.

“Secondly, if councils have noted over 19,000 incidents of inappropriate parking by way of a fine, can you imagine how many undetected instances there are that will pose a real risk to those living with sight loss? We’re asking everyone in Ireland to put yourself in a blind or vision impaired person’s shoes when you’re walking your pets, parking your car, putting out your bins or whatever it might be, and to act in a way that’s considerate to those people’s needs.”

As part of this campaign, NCBI has created a webpage at www.ncbi.ie aimed at supporting members of the public to have conversations with family members and friends about the importance of their own behaviour.