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Mishawaka parks deal with goose poop problem

March 16, 2012|By Kelli Stopczynski (kstopczynski@wsbt.com)

At least one local parks department is already getting more complaints this year.  Mishawaka’s Parks and Recreation superintendent says recent warmer weather is one reason more goose feces is causing lots of people to watch where they step.

People who walk, run and bicycle at Beutter Park have to share the unseasonably warm temperatures with Canadian geese.

“We have sidewalk sweepers that do a pretty good job of picking up a lot of goose droppings, but they’re not the ultimate solution,” said Mishawaka Parks and Recreation Superintendent Terry Zeller.

The “ultimate solution,” Zeller said, is controlling the goose population.

The city is currently working with the Department of Natural Resources to thin out the goose population – including finding nests and disturbing the eggs to keep them from hatching. 

Another possible solution could be removing the geese and taking them somewhere else.  Zeller told WSBT that’s what park officials did when he worked in the Reno, NV parks department.  But, he said, there’s a small problem with doing that in northern Indiana.

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“I don't know where you would put them.  I don't think you can move them to South Bend or Indianapolis,” he added. 

Zeller said people visiting local parks should refrain from feeding the geese because it promotes the goose poop problem.  He also said there are rules against it in Mishawaka.

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