It’s not surprising that nothing is off the table at BART union meetings; BART workers are talking pigeon droppings this time, in hopes of working in a safer and more sanitary environment.
According to the union, cleaning up pigeon droppings at Bay Area BART stations poses a health threat to workers. BART administrators, however, feel that is simply not the case.
Aside from talking money and jobs at their meeting, BART workers talk pigeon droppings. “Our workers want protective equipment and clothing and proper training on how to clean up after this,” said President Local 1021 Lisa Issler.
“You’re going to find that it is not any more toxic than the stuff that they already clean up,” argued BART spokesperson Linton Johnson.
Controversy over this issue sparked after a Daly City BART worker decided that it was unsafe for her to clean these pigeon droppings up.
And just as pigeon droppings in the Bay Area seem to start becoming a bigger problem, another pigeon has found its way to the Bay Area after a four-year long journey of 1,400 miles.
A Point Richmond, Calif. woman found a pigeon on her deck recently and discovered a blue band around its leg, which branded it as property of the Wichita Pigeon Club in Kansas. The bird has been missing from the club since 2005.
The tough little bird will be taken to a Fremont club and will most likely spend the rest of its life as a breeding pigeon.
