Hikers might have noticed less dog waste on two popular trails in South Mountain Park Preserve in Ahwatukee Foothills this winter, but it wasn’t because of a mysterious and benevolent poop fairy.
Instead, City of Phoenix employees have been collecting feces at the Desert Foothills and Pima Canyon trailheads and nearby trails to study how much was deposited before and after an outreach program to persuade people to pick up after their pets.
It’s part of the campaign “Stop Poo-lution: Bag It, Tie It, Trash It,” a collaboration between the Phoenix Water Services Department’s Environmental Services Division and Phoenix Parks and Recreation.
It kicked off on Oct. 17 and wrapped up in late February.
“We have a tally before the outreach and after the outreach to see if the behavior of the people changed,” said Luis Weisel, chief water quality inspector for the Phoenix Water Services Department.
He noted that “data” (also known as poop) was collected for three weeks in October and again in February and weighed.
City staff collected 14 pounds of waste during the initial collection in October.
Outreach events were held from October to February on the first Wednesday of the month at both trailheads, where employees provided information along with trash bag dispensers, water bottles, water dishes and more.
Weisel said that once the second data set is compiled, a consultant will prepare a report that should be ready by April.
If the campaign is deemed a success, the city will host “Stop Poo-lution” events at other locations. If not, the report will offer other approaches to improving the outcome.
Water Services is stepping into the dog doo issue because of its effect on the environment and to stanch the spread of disease. When it rains, stormwater picks up pet waste, sending harmful bacteria and viruses like E. coli and others into waterways and parks.
Weisel explained that it’s more efficient to clean up after the dogs when poop happens rather than treat and clean the water.
Although city code states pet waste “must be removed and disposed of to prevent creation of a nuisance of health and safety hazard,” there is no penalty, Weisel said.
Instead, he said, the city aims to educate the public.
Janet Kerby of Ahwatukee was walking her dog, Bobby Dazzle, near the Pima Canyon trailhead in early March and had picked up after someone else’s dog.
She said she suspects “people think somebody else is going to pick it up, or they don’t think it matters because it’s the desert.”
She also sees tied bags of waste that people have left, presumably to pick up later on their way out off the trail.
“Maybe they do, maybe they don’t,” Kerby said, “but I still have to see it. It ruins my experiences on the mountain.”
Although she knows abandoned feces is bad for the environment and water supply, Kerby said it also has an immediate effect.
“It makes hiking and walking and everything else unpleasant for the other users as they have to walk by, especially after it rains and it gets hot here,” she said. “You can actually smell it, and it stinks.”
Even if a small percentage of park users don’t pick up after their dog, it can pile up fast.
According to Parks Department data, the Pima Canyon trailhead had 401,246 visitors in 2024, and the Desert Foothills trailhead saw 80,810. However, the city doesn’t track how many of those took dogs on the trails.
Park rangers and volunteer park stewards often pick up pet waste and bags on trails when inconsiderate pet owners leave them.
So there are, in a sense, poop fairies, but that takes away from other things they could be doing.
When asked what could nudge dog owners to be more considerate, Kerby said that putting plastic bag stations and trash cans at inlets off of neighborhood streets would help reduce waste left on trails.
She hypothesized that many people walking dogs access the park from those access points rather than the main parking lots.
Joe Illing of Ahwatukee said the threat of fines might encourage dog owners to be more courteous. His wife, Paulina Illing, said she stashes bags of waste in her backpack while they walk their dogs and carries them out.
Weisel noted that the study should help the city determine how to convince people to be more responsible about cleaning up after pets.
“A lot of the pet owners, in general, they care,” he said. “It’s the few that are making it hard for everybody.”
Weisel added, “If people do their part, we will be in better shape moving forward for the environment and public health.”
Information: phoenix.gov/waterservices/envservices.
