Reader to Reader

Dear Dr. Owens:

I'm not sure whom to inform about my observations so, if it's not you, please let me know the right department or person to contact.

While I understand the difficulty in staffing the beach with lifeguards, I am wondering if the Stockbridge Parks department cannot be tasked with cleaning up the veritable carpeting of goose droppings that cover the lawn area closest to the lake. Those silhouettes of dogs apparently do not fool any goose out there. It is truly disgusting and makes what should be a relaxing and enjoyable experience very unpleasant.

I hope that you can direct these comments to the appropriate area which will take the necessary remedial action.

Sincerely,

Irene Bernstein

Hi Carole:

We are aware of the geese issue at the beach and have been working to combat the issue. The beach and grass areas at the town public beach is cleaned and raked seven days a week. This has been happening for the last three years but the difference this year is that a large flock of geese has decided to occupy the area. As most are aware it does not take long before the area is covered with droppings. Once we noticed that there was an issue we have added additional cleaning during the week and we reached out to other beaches and communities to look at possible solutions. We did try the installation of deterrents (moving dog post) that have worked at other beaches but they did not work here. We have been told about other possible solutions and will be looking into other methods. We have learned that West Stockbridge uses Organix Outdoors, Flight Control Max, products. This product provides a non-toxic repellent that's safe for humans, pets and geese with no unpleasant smell once applied and is Waterproof — won't wash away.

The bottom line is that we will be attempting to address this issue, but it may take exploring a number of options before we find a solution.

Michael J. Canales
Stockbridge Town Administrator

Photo: Lionel Delevingne