Recently, a controversy has arisen over the introduction of a 'smart pet waste disposal system' in Sejong City. When the related local government ordinance was submitted to the city council, Sejong City expressed concerns, stating that while the budget would exceed 600 million won, the effectiveness would be minimal.
Previously, Incheon has been operating a similar system at a cost of 360 million won. However, the daily usage per pet waste disposal unit is only 1.4 times. Many people find it inconvenient to use the system through a smartphone app. Additionally, there is criticism stating that spending enough budget to create a restroom for human use on pet waste disposal units is excessive.
◇Sejong City council member 'It’s difficult to enforce on-site if pet waste isn’t disposed of... smart system is necessary'
According to Sejong City on the 22nd, council member Kim Hyun-ok introduced a local government ordinance on the installation and operation of pet waste disposal facilities last month. The ordinance stipulates that Sejong City must install and operate 'pet waste collection boxes' and a 'smart waste disposal system' in public places.
Typically, pet owners take a plastic bag when going from home to the park for a walk with their dog. If their dog makes waste in the park, they collect it in the bag and take it home for disposal. Using the smart waste disposal system, they can dispose of it in the dedicated machine installed in the park.
In the city council, Kim noted, 'While the current law imposes fines on citizens for not disposing of pet waste, on-site enforcement is challenging,' adding, 'It will be a space where both pet households and non-pet owners who like animals can use and communicate together.'
In response, Sejong City reportedly takes an opposing stance, stating that the expense is high while the effectiveness is low. The estimated cost provided by Sejong City is 600 million won for the waste disposal facility, with an annual maintenance cost of 50 million won.
◇Sejong City 'Cost is 600 million won, effect will be minimal'… even Incheon, which introduced the system two years ago, sees only 1.4 usages per machine per day
Earlier, in November 2023, Incheon installed a similar system at two locations, including Wolmi Park. Then, in February of last year, it expanded to a total of 11 parks. The total number of operating smart pet waste disposal vending machines and collection boxes is 13.
Pet owners who want to use this system must install the ' Poop Poop ' app on their smartphones and sign up as members. They will receive eco-friendly waste bags for free twice a week, and if their pets defecate during walks, they can put it in the bag and dispose of it in the collection box. They can also leave 'personal walking and waste logs' through the Poop Poop app.
Incheon spent 70 million won to develop the Poop Poop app and 18 million won to build the server. The cost to produce each unit, which is about the size of a beverage vending machine, was 16 million won. The total expense for the system’s setup, including app operating costs, waste bag costs, and installation costs, is 360 million won.
However, usage has been low. As of last April, 1,979 people used the system to dispose of a total of 9,779 pet wastes. Over about 1 year and 6 months since its initial installation in November 2023, each unit of the system averaged about 1.4 disposals per day.
On the 18th, at Songhyeon Neighborhood Park in Incheon, only one pet owner was seen using the system for disposal from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. During that time, a total of 11 dogs passed in front of the system.
A user of the system, Mr. Jeon, 61, said, 'I don’t understand why eco-friendly waste bags are distributed only twice a week,' adding, 'I walk every day, but five times I end up taking the dog’s waste back home.'
Pet owners commented that 'installing and authenticating the app is complicated.' A 60-year-old individual, who walked their dog but did not use the system, said, '(For pet waste) I just dispose of it at home. Do I really need to use this machine?' Incheon Gyogeun Neighborhood Park's system had a monitor screen that was out of order.
A related official from Incheon said, 'Instead of a machine that is unnecessarily called smart, distributing waste bags for free and having a collection box should be sufficient.'
Such systems have reportedly been adopted or are under consideration in other local governments as well. A 30-something office worker living in Seoul remarked, 'With several hundred million won, we could build public restrooms for people in the parks, so spending such money on a pet waste disposal system seems like a waste,' adding, 'Shouldn't we be more prudent with tax money?'