Nature is synonymous with serenity. It's why so many people take walks at the end of a workday. Parks, woody areas, and if you're luck enough to be close to one, forest preserves make excellent places to wind down and explore. Lush green spaces make every scene beautiful, and the pleasant aroma of woods harmonizing with birds chirping is sure to lift any mood. However, just as these walks can give, they can also take. "Take" meaning ruining your clean shoes. Obviously, any trek into woodland areas should automatically mean a resignation to a dirtied pair of shoes, but there's a difference between dirt and mud and something that can ruin your whole walk. That "something" can be many things, but more often than not it is dog waste.
Nothing ruins a mood more than stepping into a heaping pile of dog poop. It reeks, is hard to get rid of, and your shoes are never really the same. Perhaps the most annoying aspect of it is the fact that it is typically close or on the walkable trail itself, meaning it is a landmine ready to ruin someone's day. Inconsiderate owners are at fault, but the reserve themselves can help alleviate the amount of dog waste simply by leaving dog waste bags at points throughout the reserve. Not only could this decrease the amount of stinky shoes, but it can help keep the ecosystem clean. Everyone has their own waste, but foreign and domesticated waste can carry harmful bacteria or parasites the local ecosystem is not accustomed to. This could leak into the soil and cause damage to both the plants that are rooted there and the animals that consume those plants.
The environmental health benefits to picking up dog waste is definitely a bonus, but most of the benefits stem from the aesthetic pleasures that exist with the absence of dog waste. Imagine bird watching, and as you take in the sights you get wafts of possibly the worst smells you can possibly think of. And, since you have the perfect spot, you don't want to leave. Well, the dog waste isn't going anywhere either. What was looking like such an enjoyable experience is now ruined all because of one irresponsible owner.
To avoid situations such as those described above, the Forest Preserve District of Cook County, Illinois is seeking bids from contractors to provide dog waste bags. If interested in supplying this opportunity, click on the link to learn more. The bid closes September 2, 2025 at 10:00 AM CT.