Published on:
24
January 2002
Birds of a feather won't stick together if Clackmannanshire Council gets its way!
For Clackmannanshire Council is urging the public to be more responsible and put their rubbish in the bin rather than feeding it to the growing feral pigeon population.
In Alloa Town Centre there are over 200 pigeons, which affect local traders, members of the public and also visitors to the town. The pigeons cause damage to buildings - so Clackmannanshire Council has decided to take action.
Alan Gow, Environmental Health Officer said: " The Council is trying to control the pigeons by encouraging the public to stop feeding them. The problem won't get better if the public continue to feed bread to the pigeons.
"Litter attracts the pigeons and makes them lazy because the public is, quite literally, giving them their food on a plate."
The Council has tried various control methods in the past such as a decoy owl, signs and physical trapping, but experts agree that the best method of removing pigeon population is to remove their feeding source.
Alan added: " There are various diseases connected to pigeons which include Flu, Salmonella, Tuberculosis and Lyme Disease. However there are other risks involved such as members of the public slipping and of course the mess it makes in local shops."
The Council is set to produce a leaflet, which will include information on how the problem can be reduced. The Alloa Town Traders and Keep Britain Beautiful support the leaflet, which is available on this site here: The Control of Feral Pigeons