Washington, D.C

Dog poop in NYC: Melting snow leaves behind hidden health hazards

Published

2 months ago

February 18, 2026

Dog poop in NYC: Melting snow leaves behind hidden health hazards

article

WASHINGTON, D.C. – As snow from late January storms finally melts across the Northeast, people living in Washington, Philadelphia and New York are confronting what had been buried underneath for weeks: dog poop left behind on sidewalks and streets.

Across neighborhood forums and Reddit threads, residents are posting photos and complaints about sidewalks littered with pet waste that had been buried beneath snow for weeks.

But this isn’t just about aesthetics.

Why it’s more than just a mess

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, pet waste is considered an environmental pollutant. When left on the ground, rain or melting snow can wash bacteria and parasites into storm drains and waterways.

Dog feces can contain harmful organisms including E. coli, salmonella and parasites such as roundworms and hookworms. These contaminants can pose risks to humans — especially children — and other animals.

In Washington, D.C., the District Department of Energy and Environment notes that pet waste contributes to water pollution when not properly disposed of, as stormwater systems in many cities flow untreated into rivers.

In other words: once the snow melts, that waste doesn’t just disappear.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – JANUARY 25: A person walks a dog in the snow in Brooklyn as a major winter storm moves through the area on January 25, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

What residents are saying

In Washington, D.C., neighborhood forums have filled with posts criticizing dog owners for failing to clean up during snowstorms.

Similar complaints have surfaced in Philadelphia, including posts about areas like Manayunk and other high-foot-traffic neighborhoods. New York residents have voiced the same frustrations after recent storms.

Many of the posts echo the same question: “Did people assume the snow would simply take care of it?”

Who is responsible?

In all three cities, pet owners are legally required to clean up after their animals.

Municipal sanitation departments are generally responsible for street cleaning, but they are not tasked with individually removing pet waste left on sidewalks. Enforcement typically falls to animal control or local authorities when violations are reported.

In short: the responsibility falls on dog owners — not the city.

TORONTO, ON – January 15 – A small dog searches for a thrown stick in the snow. (Lance McMillan/Toronto Star via Getty Images)

Why does this happen after snowstorms?

Experts say snow creates a behavioral loophole.

During heavy snowfall, some pet owners may assume waste will remain buried or that cleanup can wait. Others may struggle to locate waste under deep snow or icy conditions.

But when temperatures rise — like they have in mid-February — the result can be weeks’ worth of accumulated waste suddenly visible at once.

The freeze-thaw cycle also prevents natural decomposition, meaning what was left behind in early February may look nearly unchanged once the snow melts.

The health and environmental impact

Beyond being unpleasant, concentrated pet waste can:

Contaminate runoff that enters rivers and streams
Contribute to bacteria levels that affect water quality
Create unsanitary walking conditions in dense urban areas

Environmental agencies consistently warn that pet waste should be bagged and disposed of in trash bins — not left on sidewalks, in parks or near storm drains.

What you can do:

Experts recommend:

Always carrying extra waste bags during winter walks
Fully removing waste, even in snow or icy conditions
Disposing of bagged waste in trash receptacles — not storm drains
Reporting chronic problem areas to local sanitation or animal control
As winter loosens its grip across the Northeast, cities are once again confronting a familiar seasonal issue.

The snow may be gone, but the responsibility isn’t.

The Source: This article was written using environmental guidance from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the D.C. Department of Energy and Environment, municipal regulations in Philadelphia and New York City, and community discussions from residents in affected neighborhoods.

Washington, D.C.

Source link

Washington, D.C

12th Honor Flight Tallahassee returns home from successful trip to Washington D.C.

Published

8 hours ago

April 19, 2026

Press Room

12th Honor Flight Tallahassee returns home from successful trip to Washington D.C.

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) – Seventy-two veterans took a trip Saturday to our nation’s capital to visit memorials honoring their service in the armed forces.

This year marks the 12th trip to Washington, D.C. for Honor Flight Tallahassee.

Early Saturday morning, veterans and their guardians met to take a charter flight up to D.C.

Throughout the day, veterans were taken to the World War II memorial, as well as the Korean and Vietnam War memorials. The veterans also visited Arlington National Cemetery and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.

More Tallahassee news:

The day ended with a wonderful welcome home celebration.

Our Jacob Murphey, Julia Miller, Taylor Viles, and Grace Temple accompanied the veterans, capturing moments from throughout the day.

The team will have live coverage from Washington, D.C. on Monday to share more from the day’s events.

We will continue to have coverage throughout the month of May, leading up to our Honor Flight special on Memorial Day.

To keep up with the latest news as it develops, follow WCTV on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, Nextdoor and X (Twitter).

Have a news tip or see an error? Write to us here. Please include the article’s headline in your message.

Be the first to see all the biggest headlines by downloading the WCTV News app. Click here to get started.

Source link

Washington, D.C

Storm Team4 Forecast: A chilly, gusty Sunday before a cool start to the week

Published

20 hours ago

April 19, 2026

Press Room

Storm Team4 Forecast: A chilly, gusty Sunday before a cool start to the week

4 things to know about the weather:

Chances of rain in the morning
Gusty Sunday
Chilly Monday
Temps will rise again through the work week

Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to check the weather radar on the go.

After a nice and warm Saturday, changes arrive for part two of the weekend.

The first half of your Sunday will have a chance for showers. Winds will pick up with our next system and are expected to gust to about 20-30 mph. Cooler air will settle in, and lows Sunday night fall into the 40s.

Highs temps Monday will reach only into the mid to upper 50s.

However, temperatures will rise through the week, so you won’t need your jackets every day.

QuickCast

SUNDAY:
Showers, then partly cloudy
Wind: NW 10-15 mph
Gusts @ 30 mph
HIGH: Lower 60s

MONDAY:
Partly cloudy
Wind: NW 10-15 mph
Gusts @ 25 mph
HIGH: Upper 50s

Stay with Storm Team4 for the latest forecast. Download the NBC Washington app on iOS and Android to get severe weather alerts on your phone.

Source link

Washington, D.C

‘It’s a twilight zone’: Iran war casts deep shadows over IMF gathering in Washington

Published

2 days ago

April 18, 2026

Press Room

‘It’s a twilight zone’: Iran war casts deep shadows over IMF gathering in Washington

The most severe energy shock since the 1970s, the risk of a global recession and households everywhere stomaching a renewed surge in the cost of living – hitting the most vulnerable hardest.

In a sweltering hot Washington DC this week, the message at the International Monetary Fund meetings was chilling: things had been looking up for living standards around the world. But then came the Iran war.

“Some countries are in panic,” said the fund’s managing director, Kristalina Georgieva, addressing the finance ministers and central bank bosses in town for the IMF and World Bank spring meetings. “The sooner it [the Iran war] ends, the better for everybody.”

Such gatherings are not typically used to fight geopolitical battles. “You don’t get people shouting at one another at these things,” one senior figure remarked. But, as a record-breaking April heatwave swept the US capital, no one could ignore the mounting damage from the Iran war.

Those familiar with the mood over breakfast at a meeting of the G20’s representatives on Thursday, which included Donald Trump’s treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, and the outgoing US Federal Reserve chair, Jerome Powell – said the atmosphere in the room was sombre amid an open exchange of serious views.

“It is such a twilight-zone meeting,” said Mohamed El-Erian, a former IMF deputy managing director who is now chief economic adviser at the Allianz insurance group. “There are several shadows hanging over it: one is the shadow that comes from concern about the global economy as a whole.

“The second is that some countries are going to be particularly hard hit, and it’s mostly countries that very few people are talking about. But the third concern is the adding of insult to injury: the fact that the US, which started a war of choice, is going to be hit, but by a lot less than elsewhere in relative terms.”

Before Thursday’s breakfast, Rachel Reeves had started her day with an early-morning jog. Joined by her counterparts from Spain, Australia and New Zealand for a run down the iconic National Mall, she posted an Instagram selfie with a not-so-subtle dig: “Friends that run together – work together.”

A day earlier, the chancellor had told a CNBC conference that she thought “friends are allowed to disagree on things” as she criticised Trump’s Iran war as a “mistake” and a “folly” that had not made the world safer.

Rachel Reeves posted this image on Instagram from Washington DC on Thursday with the message: ‘Friends that run together – work together.’ Photograph: Rachel Reeves/Instagram

Speaking at a venue just steps away from the White House, before a one-on-one meeting with Bessent, she said this “fair message” was needed because UK families and businesses were feeling the pain from higher energy prices triggered by the conflict.

Those close to Reeves insist her meeting remained cordial. Britain and the US have significant shared interests in AI, financial services and trade. The chancellor also said the UK government had little time for the Iranian regime.

But with the IMF having warned on Tuesday that the Iran war could risk a global recession – in which Britain would be the biggest G7 casualty – it was clear Reeves had travelled to Washington ready to pick a fight.

“I’m struck by how vocal she has been and the words she used,” said one global financier. “We know the disagreement between Bessent and [European Central Bank president] Christine Lagarde earlier in the year. But that was in private.”

At a cocktail party held at the British ambassador’s residence for hundreds of diplomats and financiers – including the Bank of England’s governor, Andrew Bailey, the chief executive of Barclays, CS Venkatakrishnan, and dozens of senior figures – this transatlantic tension, weeks before King Charles’s US state visit, was a major topic of conversation.

The other, in the balmy residence gardens, was one of its former occupants, Peter Mandelson, as revelations about the former ambassador’s appointment threatened to further rock the UK government.

Before the war, the agenda for the IMF had been about global cooperation; the adoption of AI, jobs and work to eradicate poverty. Each of those tasks had now been complicated, but not least the task of countries working together.

For many at the meetings, the focus was on forging closer global cooperation without the world’s pre-eminent superpower.

“Everybody is talking about how you hedge against American decisions,” said David Miliband, the former UK foreign secretary, who now runs the International Rescue Committee. “You can’t do without them, because they’re 25% of the global economy. But, in a lot of fora, they’ve pulled out.

“So everyone has to think, how does one structure international cooperation? The old west is not coming back. And so everyone has to figure out how to position themselves for that world.”

For those gathering in Washington, there was irony in the fact that they were meeting in the halls of institutions founded, under US leadership, to promote global cooperation after the second world war. The whole idea of the Bretton Woods institutions was to avoid the dire economic conditions and warfare of the 1930s and 1940s. Yet this year’s meeting was taking place amid these intertwining problems.

In their conversations about the best economic policy response to the shock of conflict, the economists also knew the real power to make a difference lay two blocks across town from the IMF and the World Bank – behind the security cordons and construction equipment blocking the White House from public view. “It is not clear they can do anything about it,” said El-Erian.

Still, with a booming economy driven by AI – including Anthropic’s powerful Mythos model, the topic of much conversation – most countries cannot afford to completely break off US ties.

“People want to find ways to insulate themselves from the mess. But, on the other hand, they admire the US private sector,” El-Erian said. “The best way I’ve heard it put, is: they want to go long the private sector and short the mess. But it’s almost impossible to do.”

Source link