THE results of a campaign aiming to highlight the dog fouling problem in Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge have been revealed by the town council.

A five day campaign in which town rangers and volunteers counted and listed any bagged and un-bagged dog poo left on the streets began on Monday, March 25 as part of the Great British Spring Clean.

Those involved spent the week marking any dog faeces with chalk paint to highlight the worst-affected areas, and placing 'Don’t poop and run stencils' within these areas.

The town council says 'We’re watching you!' posters will soon be erected in the worst affected areas to try and encourage lazy dog owners to clean up their pooch's mess.

The Esplanade was found to be the worst area by a long shot, with a total of 92 un-bagged dog poos counted over just five days, and a further four which had been bagged but not disposed of.

Tyler Way in Highbridge ranked second with 19 un-bagged over the five day period, followed by Jubilee Street (16), Ashley Avenue (15), and Westfield Cemetery alley (14).

Market Street in Highbridge saw ten incidents of dog fouling, and Newton Road followed with nine - eight un-bagged, and one bagged.Burnham and Highbridge Weekly News: Volunteers Rob Croot, Stella Newman, the Mayor Lesley Millard, and David Newman.Volunteers Rob Croot, Stella Newman, the Mayor Lesley Millard, and David Newman. (Image: Burnham-on-Sea and Highbridge Town Council)

A spokesperson for the campaign said: "The results of the surveys have shown that there are repeat offenders.

"The feedback received was that incidents of dog fouling tended to be worse at night time or in areas that are not overlooked, such as alleyways.

"There was a feeling that this could be because some dog owners act irresponsibly when they think they aren’t being watched.

"There will be a number of posters displaying a watching eye image at the dog fouling hotspots to try and combat the issue. 

"The posters have a luminescent film that glows in the dark.

"Many people are unaware that you do not need to use a dog poo bin to dispose of your dog poo bags, it is fine to use any of the normal black litter bins within the towns."

As a result of the findings, the campaign will now run quarterly for the foreseeable future.