Come on, people.

How hard can it be to pick up after your dog?

It’s terrific to see so many people using the recreation trail along Auburn’s Whitman Spring Road, where it’s sometimes tough to find a place to park on the North Auburn Road side. And it’s terrific that so many people are walking their dogs, with owner and pooch each getting a little exercise.

What’s not so terrific is that too many people are simply not picking up after their dogs.

It’s not like dog droppings are an unexpected event. One of the goals of walking a dog, after all, is for the dog to poop.

There aren’t any signs along the 2-mile wooded stretch telling people to clean up, but does it really need to be said?

Apparently, it does.

Frequent walker Dan St. Pierre was right to bring the problem to the attention of the Auburn Water District, which will address the issue at its next board meeting.

According to the district’s water quality manager, Mary Jane Dillingham, feces runoff isn’t a huge threat to Lake Auburn, but it is a disgusting scene for people using the trail.

The water district could and probably should put up poop bag dispensers at the entrances to the Spring Road, and perhaps at a couple of locations along the way. That would require someone to monitor the dispensers to make sure they are supplied with bags, but maybe some of the regular walkers could volunteer to do that.

The cost of these supplies would of course be passed on to water district rate payers in both cities or, perhaps, a better option would be for both cities to create a fund, preferably with fines levied against those who don’t clean up after their pets to cover the cost of these supplies.

Dispensers installed along Auburn’s River Walk really cut down on the amount of waste there, so when the option is available, most people seem willing to pick up after their dogs.

Both cities also have ordinances in place and fines for offenders but presumably little enforcement of the same. So as ludicrous as it may sound, an occasional poop patrol and a handful of fines may be the most cost-effective way to dispense of this unfortunate problem.

Whitman Spring Road is a terrific spot, no matter what the season, and users have some responsibility not to abuse the privilege of public lands.

Picking up your own dog’s poop seems like the very least you can do.