GOLD COAST FACES ‘EXTRAORDINARY’ PROBLEM WITH PLASTIC-WRAPPED DOG POO

Dubbed the Glitter Strip, Queensland’s second-largest city is confronting a less-than-glamorous issue with dog waste.

According to a report presented to the Gold Coast City Council (GCCC), nearly 13 million free dog waste bags were utilized in the city during the 2022-23 financial year. This figure surpasses the combined usage of Brisbane City Council (9.6 million bags), City of Logan (486,000 bags), and Sunshine Coast Council (2.16 million bags) within the same period.

The Gold Coast houses approximately 69,000 registered dogs, which is 40,000 fewer than Brisbane. Despite this lower dog population, the Gold Coast distributes 3 million more dog waste bags annually compared to the state capital.

On a per-dog basis, a groodle on the Gold Coast uses more than double the number of poo bags than a beagle in Brisbane each year.

Mark Hammel, Chair of GCCC’s planning and regulation committee, characterized the volume of plastic bags used as “remarkable” and pointed out flaws in the design of the Gold Coast’s bag dispensers.

“Sometimes it’s challenging not to end up with a handful of five or 10 bags,” Cr Hammel remarked.

“I think for some people that’s done by accident, others I suspect it’s done on purpose so that’s a big part of it.”

The report estimates more than 4 million bags each year are used for things other than dog poo — mostly rubbish, food, bait, wet clothes and nappies.

Environmental issue

In contrast to neighboring councils, the Gold Coast utilizes plastic instead of biodegradable or compostable dog waste bags. This choice resulted in approximately 23 tonnes of plastic waste being deposited into landfills during the 2022-23 financial year, as reported by the GCCC.

Environmental campaigner and plastic bag ban advocate Jon Dee described that as a “major problem”.

“The bags the council are using are degradable bags that contain heavy metals and unfortunately that means they can break down into very small microplastics,” Mr Dee said.

The GCCC report indicates that the city spends $260,000 annually on dog waste bags, amounting to 2 cents per bag for approximately 13 million bags used.

Moreover, the expenses for maintaining and servicing the bag dispensers have risen by approximately 5% each year since 2019/20. Last financial year, this cost the council $479,000, contributing to a total expenditure of nearly $750,000.

The report recommends the council makes the switch to compostable bags.

That would double the per-bag cost but reduce the amount of waste going into the city’s landfill sites, something the council has been striving towards for years.

In a piece for the The Conversation, professor of molecular biology at Deakin University Leigh Ackland said dog poo could be used as plant food if composted correctly.

“Rather than wrap it in plastic and throw it away — where it eventually ends up in landfill — you can use dog poo as a sustainable source of fertiliser.”

Council considerations

Following the presentation of the report at the GCCC planning and regulation committee meeting, Councillor Brooke Patterson raised concerns about whether dog owners from outside the city were contributing to the substantial expenditure on dog waste bags on the Gold Coast.

Councillor Patterson remarked, “If you visit The Spit on any Sunday afternoon, it’s challenging to find a local resident; most people there are with their dogs from Logan and Ipswich.”

“Some people who use our facilities aren’t local, and we’re happy to have them; it’s wonderful.”

There were also concerns from other councillors regarding the expenses and feasibility of transitioning to compostable bags, particularly considering the significant quantity of bags distributed annually by the city.

“Using compostable bags in coastal areas might pose challenges in keeping them weatherproof,” noted Councillor Hammel.

“If moisture gets in, you could end up with a clump of 1,000 bags stuck together.”

Speaking to the ABC after reading the council’s report, Mr Dee poured a dog-dish of water over that notion.

“At the end of the day, as a dog owner myself, I believe dog owners should be taking their own poo bags because that’s part of your responsibility as an owner.”

GCCC’s planning and regulation committee voted to defer its discussion of the dog waste bag policy and conduct further workshops and consultation to better understand the issue.