Foster City has a poop problem. A goose poop problem, to be exact. And while no one wants to trek through doo-doo on their way to a picnic, the city’s plans to kill its foul friends has activists honking mad.
Here’s the deal: Hundreds of geese call the Silicon Valley city home. The birds poop all over the parks and beaches, and city officials say every one of their efforts to address the problem has failed.
Foster City has applied for federal permits to kill the birds. That has set off a firestorm. Protestors rallied outside City Hall this month. They say the city must seek out more alternatives before snuffing out the birds’ lives.
Foster City officials haven’t made a final decision yet, but they insist the problem is more than a matter of inconvenience. The geese contaminate water and have the potential to spread viruses like avian flu, they say.
Read more at the Sacramento Bee.