Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
The Massive Problem of Human Poo in Our Local Parks
~ NOT FOR THE FAINT-HEARTED ~
As far as i can tell from many friends in different boroughs, this is a problem not exclusive to my local park and seems to blight pretty much every London park. However, many of you who do not own dogs may not be aware of this problem.
There is an extremely serious and profuse problem in Downhills Park with human faeces.
On a daily basis there are new faeces in the park, not only in wooded, shrubby areas but also in completely open areas such as on open grass, bases of trees or on the field etc.!
Apart from the obvious disgust and stench it causes, It is also a massive health hazard to children, park visitors, dog owners as well as dogs who have been made violently ill and have even died from consuming human faeces produced from drug-abusers (the human waste contains EDIT: drugs). Have you ever had to clear up dog-vomit that was made up of 100% human poo? COME ON HARINGEY, HELP US?!?!?
Any responsible dog owner (who by the way, all make sure they clean up after their dog's own mess - dog mess is pretty much eradicated in Downhills) can confirm to you that the problem of human excrement is a massive one because dogs tend to sniff out and eat the human faeces. Sadly, our cute 4-legged friends have a very dark and unpleasant side.
Dogs DO NOT eat other dog/animal faeces (EDIT: apparently some dogs do eat other animal poo eg: fox or cat poo) which is how this poo is identifiable. There are often wet-wipes, newspaper or toilet roll papers accompanying the mess which also indicate that it's human in nature. It is not just drug-addicts and homeless doing this, many dog walkers i know have witnessed people actually defecating and walking away, as well as parents letting children defecate in open areas and walking away. I myself have seen men enter the park, enter the bushes and 10 mins later come out the bushes pulling their trousers up (apparently dressed for work!).
Myself and my dog-walking friends try to text eachother when we come across human faeces to try to warn and avoid their dogs also getting into the mess. Most days, us dog-owners are having to bring our dogs with human excrement around their faces into our houses to bathe them and clean/disinfect ourselves and our houses. Do you have any idea how much of a nightmare this is?
I have used this park for 2.5 years and in the last 1 year the problem has become extreme. Because now the human poo is right there in the middle of the grass for any child to come across.
I know many people who are very concerned about this and feel threatened by the drug addicts and drug dealers who are frequenting the park as well as homeless people but feel they are powerless to do anything about it. A petition was apparently ignored by Haringey council, surprise surprise. I know that public toilets can be breeding grounds for drug abuse but surely it would help eradicate this foul problem? On another note, they are planning on using part of the park land to build tall flats, so surely the extra people around will only add fuel to the fire?
I have today written a complaint on the Council's reporting page.
If you have the same concerns please also report it!
https://eforms.secure.haringey.gov.uk/ufs/ufsmain?formid=REPORTING_...
Tags for Forum Posts: downhills park, drug, excrement, faeces, homelessness, local, owners, park, poo, poop, More…
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Old-Age-Emporium(OAE) on
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Alas! despite my best efforts those who were weaned on Winnie the Poo still persist in infantilising the rich directness of Old & Middle English, of Chaucer, of Shakespeare, of Steinbeck.
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Permalink Reply by Alan Stanton on
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OAE. Shakespeare, I've read, was later censored to remove the short rich direct words. But leaving in the slang and euphemisms which would have been known to his audience but maybe not in later centuries. Is there a modern edition where the shit and everything else is reliably restored?
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Permalink Reply by Alison M on
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Firstly, if you're blaming all of us addicts (Hi, my name is Alison and I am an addict) then why don't you write to Haringey Council complaining about their complete lack of drugs services, rehabilitation centres, community based support, aftercare services, etc etc etc? Not to mention their only source of mental health care, the one and only, solution to psychosis worldwide, the beautiful St. Anns Hospital?
With addiction comes homelessness and vice versa. However, more often than not, homelessness creates addiction and addiction creates mental health problems.
If you believe it's these incredibly threatening addicts/homeless who are shitting all over your parade, instead of pointing your finger, why not get to the root of the problem and have a think about WHY they are needing to use the local park? Most likely because the local park is their home. And we all know the best place to take a dump and read the paper is in the peace and tranquillity of your own home.
Secondly, heroin is not found in human poo. In fact, heroin makes you extremely unbelievably constipated, so if anything it is not dirty junky shit strategically placed on your lawn to ruin your day, simply because they couldn't even if they wanted to. Unless they're planning on stealing your dog and selling it for crack, I can guarantee they don't even notice you. Sadly, they're just thinking about a hit. As we all do in active addiction. When in withdrawal, your body naturally goes into survival mode, it will release heroin in the fastest way possible through sweat and urine but not shit... And I can say with 100% certainty that when the time comes, you will know when you've found the shit of a heroin addict in severe withdrawal.
Thirdly, it's not true that dogs do not eat dog/other animal poo because actually, my old dog, bless his heart, loved nothing more than to eat fox shit. Or... My friends dogs shit... Or... Strangely... HIS shit!!
As an ex heroin addict I see why you're scared. It's a scary world. We're not all bad but seriously, you can't shit when you're on heroin. Crack addicts... Well... It's definitely them, dirty tramps. Never did like those lot! ;)
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Thanks Alison for that informative post. Another area of my enormous ignorance revealed.
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Couldn't resist this.."Dogs DO NOT eat other dog/animal faeces" … well you just don't know doggies…i know two that eat both cat and dog poo.! Don't ask! I'm sure other dog owners will concur….
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Permalink Reply by Sarah on
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A lot of people sleep in vans around here. They go to the toilet in the open spaces on my estate. This is why a beautiful hedge was cut right back. And why parking restrictions are being introduced on the estates here. Where they have been introduced though the same people keep turning up in different vans.
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Permalink Reply by John McMullan on
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Yes, there's a whole spectrum between actually sleeping on the streets to having your own bathroom and bedroom. Not just vans but some of the nicer cars in Tottenham seem to be owned by young men who have no fixed abode but are able to lay temporary claim to a bathroom and bedroom a few nights a week.
On top of this, and I'm not sure they're still doing it, is the council's predilection for housing their statutory obligations in B&B accommodation. This is where the nappies on Duckett's Common used to come from. As I said, I'm not sure they still do this.
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Nappies was given as another reason for cutting the hedge down. I'd seen those myself, over my side of the fence from a house whose occupants I've seen with the van people.
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We use Downhills Park a lot and have noticed this as well. For a while there was a caravan parked on Downhills Park Road and a couple of times we saw people leave the caravan and walk into park with toilet roll in hand. Caravan now gone but clearly problem is quite widespread from lots of different walks of life.
Complaining to council definitely worth it. We've had some success with other issues however going to the community police team. They patrol the park every day and have amped up their presence in light of some increased gang activity in the park after the cafe closed down. If lots of people tell them to look out for this issue they can help crack down on it. Contact details here:
http://content.met.police.uk/Team/Haringey/WestGreen
Not that this will solve the bigger issue of facilities and support for the people using the park as a toilet. Public loos would be a start here but in meantime there must be something that can be done to stop this awful public health menace. Lots and lots of babies and toddlers in the park everyday.
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Permalink Reply by warren miller on
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Just walking in downhills park now and someone's done a big one right on the park path. Human for sure.
Pretty f'ing awful!!
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