NAGOYA, JAPAN, Nov 6 (NHK / ASIAVISION) – The city of
Nagoya in central Japan is launching a campaign to combat dog droppings.
On Monday, city officials began circling yellow chalk around
droppings as a way of urging people to clean them up when walking their dogs.
Media were invited to a test run.
The full-scale campaign starts in the fiscal year beginning
April. City officials also wrote the time and day next to the droppings, which
were found in 42 locations in just 40 minutes.
The officials say they receive about 600 complaints a year
about dog droppings.
Nagoya is following in the footsteps of Uji City in Kyoto
Prefecture, where the “yellow chalk” method has proved successful.
Members of the public will also carry out daily patrols,
except on Sundays, through the end of this month to see whether the yellow
chalk is effective.
Nagoya resident Mikiko Kitagawa says she was surprised to
see so many uncollected droppings, and that dog owners should clean them up.
Leaving dog waste on the street is banned by local
authorities across Japan. (NHK / ASIAVISION)