A stock image of a dog in the snow, probably about to poop.
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With a lot more snow dropping on the Upper West Side, residents are bracing for a repeat of a problem that emerged during the last thaw: mountains of dog waste left behind by negligent pet owners who apparently thought the snow would make their mess disappear. But one local resident has made it her mission to fight back — armed with nothing but doggie bags and determination.
Olivia Bannerman, a 28-year-old software designer and model, has become a one-woman cleanup crew in Riverside Park, earning her the affectionate neighborhood nickname “the Poop Fairy.” As documented on her TikTok page and first reported by the New York Post, Bannerman has been hitting the park at least twice a day, going through entire rolls of waste bags in as little as 15 minutes — each roll typically containing around 15 bags.
The nickname has an ironic origin. Per the Post story, former Council Member Erik Bottcher originally coined the term when urging constituents to pick up after their dogs, reminding them that no magical being was going to do the job for them. Neighbors have since bestowed the title on Bannerman, and she’s embraced it wholeheartedly.
The scope of the problem is staggering. The Post reported that the city’s 311 system received 643 dog waste complaints citywide between the January 25 snowstorm and this week — representing a roughly 94 percent increase compared to the same timeframe last year and a 160 percent jump from just two weeks earlier. Dog owners apparently left droppings buried under the snow, where they froze into the ice and emerged en masse during the thaw.
Bannerman, who moved to New York from Seattle — where her family runs a llama farm — told the Post she feels a responsibility to give back to her adopted community. She described the cleanup as her way of contributing to a densely populated neighborhood where everyone’s actions affect one another. She’s also taken to social media to call out lazy dog owners and has even asked for help covering the cost of bags.
It may not be a glamorous gig, but Bannerman’s effort is a reminder that community stewardship often starts with one person deciding to do something about a problem rather than just complaining. So the next time you’re strolling through Riverside Park and notice a stretch that’s a little cleaner than the rest — you might just have the Poop Fairy to thank.
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