Canada installs special 'poop bag' dispensers to fix faecal furore in wilderness

The increase in hikers, campers and climbers around Squamish in southwestern British Columbia, Canada has intensified their friction with locals, especially in the wake of the visitors opting to answer the call of nature in the wild.

The Squamish Access Society (SAS) earlier this week stated that it has entered into a partnership with the park service of the province and local businesses to install five poop bag dispensers at busy climbing spots, with four more dispensers set to come in the weeks ahead.

Generally, visitors leave the temperate rainforest with an appreciation for rugged beauty, however, not everyone follows the principles of “no trace” camping or climbing, as unfortunate discoveries are later made over not-so-popular hiking trails or on the ledges of remote crags.

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Unlike dog waste bags installed in city parks, the dispensers will have waste-alleviating gel bags, which are known as Wag bags, that contain enzymes which help in breaking down faecal matter and smell.

For some people who frequently go for outdoor adventure the bags are a fixture of their gear list, however, with social media encouraging many hikers, campers and climbers, SAS felt that the problem was not taking care of itself.

"There's been an explosion in the usage of our backcountry areas in southwest B.C. and the Sea-to-Sky corridor, and rock climbing is very much a part of that, "said Ben Webster, chair of the SAS, while speaking to CBC.

"Increasingly we are finding that there are issues with human waste, particularly in our more remote crags,” he said.

“We tested it out by having a bag and [putting it in] a hot car for the day, inside of the car, and there were no odours afterwards,” he stated while speaking to CityNews.

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“So the bags are effective, they’re robust, you don’t have to worry about leakage. And the idea is you take it out and dispose of it properly afterwards,” he added.

Pictograms to demonstrate how to use bags

Along with a handful of bags at the stations, the group will also include a number of pictograms which will demonstrate how the bags can be used to relieve oneself in the wilderness.

One of the owners of Climb On Katy Holm did not blame the rock climbing community for the issue with human waste found in the Squamish area, stating that it is majorly associated with people camping or living in their vehicles.

"I don't think it is acutely an issue at crags," stated Holm. "Climbers are most certainly familiar with this. Those that have travelled won't see it as something new, but I'm sure others will have challenges adopting,” she said while speaking about the bags.

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