Washington, D.C
Dog poop in NYC: Melting snow leaves behind hidden health hazards
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
The director of the Congressional Budget Office—known for its gloomy national debt data—is very optimistic that a crisis will be avoided entirely | Fortune
Dr Phillip Swagel is an optimist, both by nature and when he looks at the U.S. economy.
This fact is perhaps at odds with what one might assume: Swagel is the director of the Congressional Budget Office (CBO), the nonpartisan agency that offers independent budgetary and economic analysis to Congress.
Very often—an inevitable occupational hazard—the subject of national debt and the interest the U.S. Treasury pays to maintain is its central focus. The numbers are eye-watering: Public debt stands at more than $39 trillion. The interest expense on that borrowing now exceeds $1 trillion a year. Indeed, the latest budget update from the CBO highlights that the government—according to preliminary estimates—paid out nearly $530 billion between October 2025, when the fiscal year starts, and March 2026. This equates to more than $88 billion in interest payments a month, or more than $22 billion a week.
The CBO’s figures are routinely cited by policymakers, think tanks, and lobbyists as alarming evidence that the U.S. needs to find a more sustainable fiscal path or risk dire straits.
Swagel doesn’t subscribe to the notion that the U.S. will face a crisis of its own making. His justification is simple: He was at the Treasury during the 2008 financial crisis, and joined the CBO months before the COVID pandemic began. He has watched as the U.S. economy, seemingly against all odds, has clawed its way out of economic crises before.
That’s not to say Swagel isn’t a staunch advocate of setting the U.S. on a more sustainable fiscal path—rather, he trusts the people in power to do so when the time comes.
Why the optimism?
Among those concerned about national debt are notable names: JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell, and Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio. Tesla CEO Elon Musk is also worried about federal spending and has endorsed a plan floated by Berkshire Hathaway founder Warren Buffett that would render members of Congress ineligible for reelection if they allow deficits to exceed 3% of GDP.
On the other hand, optimistic economists suggest that, despite the value of the debt, it’s not actually an issue: the bond market is holding steady, indicating a reliable market of buyers. Likewise, the U.S.’s own central bank buys huge swaths of the debt, meaning, in the simplest of layman’s terms, the economy can essentially print its own money. There are holes in this argument, not least the fact that Fed chairman nominee Kevin Warsh has suggested he would like to reduce the Fed’s balance sheet and may therefore be less inclined to finance borrowing.
Swagel’s positive outlook doesn’t rely on the argument that a crisis hasn’t happened yet, so therefore it never will: “[My optimism] is rooted in my experience,” Swagel tells Fortune in an exclusive interview in Washington D.C. “First being at Treasury during the financial crisis and seeing very difficult times and the country coming together with an effective response—not saying it’s perfect, lots of controversy—but it was effective.”
“The second thing is policymakers are smart, they’re thoughtful. Interacting with members of Congress makes me optimistic. I know you read about all the squabbles … I’m completely aware of this, but the policymakers that are thinking about these things are thoughtful and effective. Not necessarily always effective at passing legislation, but that’s part of our political system, it was set up to make it difficult ot pass legislation.”
Decisions on the horizon
Swagel’s optimism that Congress will be pushed into action will be tested sooner rather than later, likely at some point in the next six years, he told Fortune. This is partly due to the fact that, according to the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget (CRFB) both Social Security and Medicare will become insolvent within that time period.
“Making progress to address the fiscal trajectory would be a positive for the U.S. economy,” Swagel said. “Credible steps would lead to lower interest rates that would make the subsequent adjustment easier, there is a reward to virtue. It’s a positive thing, we can’t go on [with] the scolding narrative. My sense is that members of Congress understand the fiscal situation, it’s not that everyone single one has looked at our one-pager of numbers and understands the debt to the third decimal point, but they understand something needs to be done.”
“It doesn’t have to be done immediately, but at some point reasonably soon.”
Swagel is of the opinion that bond investors haven’t increased risk premiums not because they’re not worried about a fiscal crisis, but because they have priced in preventative action from Congress—in his mind “a vote of confidence that my optimism is not misplaced.”
“As a country, we face up to these problems. It’s not happening now, I’m not sure it’s going to happen in the rest of this year or even the next year, or the next two years. But we will face up to it, and the market in some sense expects us to, because otherwise interest rates would be higher,” he explained.
The Cheesecake Factory
The role of the CBO, to some extent, is to provide policymakers with their options if and when they do choose to take action on federal deficits. It’s a menu not unlike the Cheesecake Factory, Swagel says: Large, inclusive of a range of modifications and options, and delivered without judgement.
“Right now it’s maybe a pick three, and you’re looking at a six or seven course menu,” joked Caleb Quakenbush, director of fiscal policy at the Bipartisan Policy Center, in an interview with Fortune. “The longer you delay, the more you’re gonna have to add to your tab, and those options become more expensive.”
Indeed, economists and analysts aren’t necessarily worried about the absolute level of government debt, rather the debt-to-GDP ratio. Depending on whom you ask, the debt-to-GDP ratio stands at around 122% of GDP at present. This measure demonstrates an economy’s spending versus its growth, and the risk associated with lending to a nation that isn’t growing fast enough to handle its spending. To rebalance that ratio, an economy could either cut spending or increase growth—the latter being by far the less painful option.
The growth option is becoming less feasible, Michael Peterson, CEO of fiscal think tank the Peter G. Peterson Foundation, told Fortune in an exclusive interview: “I think it requires government action because we’ve waited so long. We’ve added so many trillions, and the current deficit is so big at 6% that the level of growth you would need really exceeds what is feasible.
“Growth needs to be a part of it, but it’s sort of a vicious cycle. The longer we delay, the more debt we have, the slower growth is going to be. The more we get this under control, I think the greater optimism there is, interest rates go down, more growth comes from that. It’s sort of a virtuous or vicious cycle depending on your policy response.”
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.
Copyright 2026 WCTV. All rights reserved.
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.
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