Help Keep Our Water Clean

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on Linkedin Email this link


Pet Waste: Scoop it, Bag it, Trash it

Summer is ending, and with it, so are the long, sunny days. Looking toward Fall, we think of the rain that awaits us. This rain helps to keep our state lush and green, but that rain also turns into runoff that washes harmful toxins into our lakes and streams.

Our goal is to protect the Kokanee salmon in Lake Sammamish by staying informed about actions we can take to prevent harmful substances from running off into our waterways.


Pet Waste can be a Stormwater Nightmare

Pet waste is a small problem that can grow to be a stormwater nightmare. Did you know that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says that a single dog can produce about 250 pounds of poop a year? That is a lot of pet poop, especially when we consider how many dogs live in the entire City of Sammamish. Pet waste is a real problem in our water, and it leaves two main pollutants in our waterways: nutrients and pathogens.

Nutrients are substances that help to promote growth in living organisms. We know that humans, animals, and plants all require nutrients to thrive, so why are additional nutrients bad for local water bodies? Adding additional nutrients to lakes and streams causes excessive growth of algae and weeds, which can leave water green, murky, and smelling bad. The overgrowth of algae and weeds can also make it dangerous to swim, boat or even fish in affected water.

1997 Toxic Algae Bloom in Lake Sammamish

Photo credit: https://kingcounty.gov

Pathogens are bacteria, viruses or other microorganisms that can cause disease. Pathogens in water bodies can make that water unsafe to anything that interacts with it and can cause death in local wildlife or pets and severe illness in humans.

The EPA classifies dog poop as equivalent in harm to an oil spill in water, thus making dog poop an incredibly harmful toxin! Our community can avoid many of these problems in Lake Sammamish and other local water bodies with one very simple action:


Scoop it, Bag it, Trash it

Pick up your pet waste and throw it away.


Picking up after your pets is simple if you are prepared


  • Scoop it: Get a poop bag carrier that can attach to the leash. Bag it: If you forget your bags, look for courtesy bags. Trash it: Find trash receptacles in nearby parks.
  • There are many tools that you can use to help pick up poop. This video has reviewed some of these tools and can help you pick the right one for you.
  • Try to avoid letting your pet do their business close to a water body.
  • Make sure to pick up pet waste in your backyard. Runoff comes from all over the watershed, and your yard is no exception.
  • Most importantly, never throw your pet waste down a storm drain.


If you want some inspiration this is a wonderful song about picking up your pet waste around the Puget Sound.

We can all do our duty to protect Kokanee salmon and other Lake Sammamish wildlife by picking up our pet waste.


Sources:

What You Can Do in Your Home - Environmental Protection Agency

Source Water Protection Practices Bulletin Managing Pet and Wildlife Waste to Prevent Contamination of Drinking Water -Environmental Protection Agency

Pet Waste-What Can We Do? - City of Sammamish




Pet Waste: Scoop it, Bag it, Trash it

Summer is ending, and with it, so are the long, sunny days. Looking toward Fall, we think of the rain that awaits us. This rain helps to keep our state lush and green, but that rain also turns into runoff that washes harmful toxins into our lakes and streams.

Our goal is to protect the Kokanee salmon in Lake Sammamish by staying informed about actions we can take to prevent harmful substances from running off into our waterways.


Pet Waste can be a Stormwater Nightmare

Pet waste is a small problem that can grow to be a stormwater nightmare. Did you know that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) says that a single dog can produce about 250 pounds of poop a year? That is a lot of pet poop, especially when we consider how many dogs live in the entire City of Sammamish. Pet waste is a real problem in our water, and it leaves two main pollutants in our waterways: nutrients and pathogens.

Nutrients are substances that help to promote growth in living organisms. We know that humans, animals, and plants all require nutrients to thrive, so why are additional nutrients bad for local water bodies? Adding additional nutrients to lakes and streams causes excessive growth of algae and weeds, which can leave water green, murky, and smelling bad. The overgrowth of algae and weeds can also make it dangerous to swim, boat or even fish in affected water.

1997 Toxic Algae Bloom in Lake Sammamish

Photo credit: https://kingcounty.gov

Pathogens are bacteria, viruses or other microorganisms that can cause disease. Pathogens in water bodies can make that water unsafe to anything that interacts with it and can cause death in local wildlife or pets and severe illness in humans.

The EPA classifies dog poop as equivalent in harm to an oil spill in water, thus making dog poop an incredibly harmful toxin! Our community can avoid many of these problems in Lake Sammamish and other local water bodies with one very simple action:


Scoop it, Bag it, Trash it

Pick up your pet waste and throw it away.


Picking up after your pets is simple if you are prepared


  • Scoop it: Get a poop bag carrier that can attach to the leash. Bag it: If you forget your bags, look for courtesy bags. Trash it: Find trash receptacles in nearby parks.
  • There are many tools that you can use to help pick up poop. This video has reviewed some of these tools and can help you pick the right one for you.
  • Try to avoid letting your pet do their business close to a water body.
  • Make sure to pick up pet waste in your backyard. Runoff comes from all over the watershed, and your yard is no exception.
  • Most importantly, never throw your pet waste down a storm drain.


If you want some inspiration this is a wonderful song about picking up your pet waste around the Puget Sound.

We can all do our duty to protect Kokanee salmon and other Lake Sammamish wildlife by picking up our pet waste.


Sources:

What You Can Do in Your Home - Environmental Protection Agency

Source Water Protection Practices Bulletin Managing Pet and Wildlife Waste to Prevent Contamination of Drinking Water -Environmental Protection Agency

Pet Waste-What Can We Do? - City of Sammamish



Page last updated: 16 Aug 2022, 09:49 AM