Dog Sniffs Out Sewer Leaks

Coastal communities that are struggling with the high cost of keeping their swimming beaches and fishing areas clean and pollution-free should pay attention to a new low-tech solution that is causing quite a stink in the field of environmental consulting.

Sable, a 3.5-year-old German shepherd mix and former shelter dog from Lansing, Michigan, is a mutt with a mission.

Sable is the only dog alive that can reliably sniff out raw sewage and detergents flowing into storm sewers from illegal or faulty pipe connections, a rare talent that can save communities hundreds of thousands of dollars in labor costs and expensive tests.

Sable lives and works with his trainer, Scott Reynolds, 38, a former narcotics dog trainer, who rescued the dog from a local animal shelter in spring 2007 and began training him to detect and track scents related to sewage and detergents that can foul streams, beaches and coastal waters. Within a few months, Sable and his nose turned pro.

Sable and Reynolds offer their services for $5,000 to $10,000 per week, a bargain compared to the six-figure price tags communities often face for extensive and sophisticated field and laboratory tests. Sable’s nose is so sensitive and accurate—his success rate is 87 percent—that he is often able to eliminate or significantly reduce the need for further testing. And the companies or agencies that employ Sable get immediate results rather than being forced to wait weeks or months for detailed lab reports.

Reynolds was working for an environmental consulting firm when he started training Sable, but he has since formed his own company, Environmental Canine Services LLC, and has started training two more dogs.

Most humans would turn up their noses at Sable’s job, but he loves it.

"He loves it!" Reynolds said in an interview with Greenwire. "Every day, when I get ready for work, he runs and jumps on the counter, looking at his harness and hoping that he gets to work that day."

Also Read:

• Beach Pollution a Growing Threat to U.S. Health and Economy
• From Toilet to Tap: California Transforms Sewage Into Drinking Water
• Misplaced Sewer Line Raises a Stink at Washington State Ecology Department