Public-Space Waste Mitigation in San Francisco

Overview and Issue Summary

Last updated: January 29, 2026

This issue summary on public-space waste mitigation in San Francisco is part of Decency LLC’s ongoing efforts to promote consideration and discussion of nuanced topics in healthcare and public health.

The goal of this summary is to present a public health challenge and a set of attempted interventions, for each intervention taking a look at (1) the reasoning behind the effort, (2) the impact of or responses to the effort, and (3) lessons derived from that experience.

Acknowledging that the topic of homelessness in San Francisco is broad, as is the topic of San Francisco’s street-cleaning efforts, this summary focuses in on one specific and extensively-documented sub-topic: the mitigation of fecal waste, including but not limited to human fecal waste, in San Francisco’s public spaces.[1][2][3]

This summary is based in part on the author’s firsthand observations visiting San Francisco in January 2024, January 2025, and January 2026. The presence of fecal waste on downtown sidewalks was incidentally notable in 2024 and 2025. In 2026, the author spent two mornings walking areas above (January 19) and below (January 20) Market Street and noted that fecal waste was still observable on San Francisco’s sidewalks.

It is important to keep in mind that the present summary is non-exhaustive and intended to provide an introduction for interested readers. It can also serve as a case study showing how public and private entities might respond to a city’s (1) sanitation challenges and (2) challenges related to homelessness, what interventions might be attempted, and what the impact and limitations of those efforts can be.

A Brief History of Public-Space Fecal Waste in San Francisco

The presence of human fecal waste on San Francisco sidewalks is well-documented in headlines dating back to at least the early 2010s.[4]

In 2014, web developer Jennifer Wong brought national attention to the issue by creating maps based on a “database of complaints about human feces and urine phoned in to [San Francisco’s] Department of Public Works in 2013.”[4]

In the same year (2014), students’ reports to officials of what they encountered on the way to school helped inspire a now long-running Pit Stop program to increase restroom access.[5][6]

Two years later, local media reported “an explosion in complaints about needles and feces on the streets and sidewalks,” with complaints about feces increasing 39 percent since the previous fiscal year.[7]

In 2018, San Francisco again gained national attention with the creation of a Poop Patrol, inspired by “conversations between [Public Works director Mohammed] Nuru and Mayor London Breed,” while reports of feces to the city’s 311 service exceeded 14,000 for the year.[8][9][10]

In a 2025 Performance Audit of the Management of Street Cleaning by San Francisco Public Works, the San Francisco Budget and Legislative Analyst’s Office noted that the Pit Stop program had expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic (2020) and later declined in size “due to budget constraints.”[2]

Media reported a decrease in reports of feces in 2021 compared to 2020 and 2019.[11]

Then, in 2025, the Budget and Legislative Analyst’s Office asserted that “[o]bserved [w]aste on [s]idewalks ha[d] [i]ncreased.”[2]

A FY25 Street & Sidewalk Maintenance Standards Annual Report from the San Francisco Controller’s Office showed that 34% of their evaluated routes “had at least one instance of feces present, slightly higher than the 30 percent average in FY24.”[12]

Interventions (2014-Present)

The Pit Stop Program (2014)

In 2014, SFGATE reported that, following “a chorus of complaints and a month spent mapping the highest concentrations of human excrement in the Tenderloin [neighborhood],” San Francisco’s Department of Public Works was introducing mobile restrooms at “three most well-used areas.”[13]

SFGATE noted that San Francisco had previously installed self-cleaning restrooms in the mid-1990s, but “some [had] quickly bec[o]me favorites for” unintended purposes. With that in mind, the city was planning “to assign an attendant to each portable bathroom station during hours of operation.”[13]

In 2015, local media reported that San Francisco was hiring “potty-sitters” to ensure that public toilets were being used for their intended purpose. The hiring of attendants was described as an “outgrowth” of the Pit Stop program, with attendants additionally staffing toilets maintained by French ad agency JCDecaux.[14] The San Francisco Chronicle had previously reported (2011) that “upkeep [wa]s spotty” in San Francisco’s automated, self-cleaning toilets, and had pointed both to promising research on supervised public restrooms in New York, and to Seattle’s unsuccessful 2004 experience with automated units that “bec[a]me so dirty and dangerous that even street people refused to use them.” The Chronicle suggested that “[w]ith full-time attendants,” units “should be [facilities] that both tourists and street people would be eager to use.”[15]

According to the San Francisco Chronicle in 2015, after monitors were hired at one JCDecaux facility, daily flushes increased from 25 to more than 100.[14]

In 2018, one Pit Stop monitor told the San Francisco Chronicle that 90 percent of visitors were using the toilets as intended, while others were using them as “a motel,” sheltering inside overnight, or using them for other purposes.[8]

According to an audit by the San Francisco Budget and Legislative Analyst’s Office, during the COVID-19 pandemic the Pit Stop program expanded to 55 toilets “in response to . . . public health mandates,” though the number of Pit Stop toilets later declined “due to budget constraints.”[2]

In 2022, researchers from UC Berkeley published a study suggesting that, between January 1, 2014 and January 1, 2020, “increased access to public toilets reduced feces reports to the San Francisco Department of Public Works, especially in neighborhoods with people experiencing homelessness.”[16]

In 2023, the lead researcher from that study collaborated with a new team collecting discarded feces from public spaces in San Francisco and “model[ing] pathogens removed from the environment attributable to a . . . program of public toilet construction.” The researchers concluded that “[i]mproving access to public sanitation can reduce enteric pathogen hazards in cities.”[17]

In 2025, the Budget and Legislative Analyst’s Office recommended that criteria be expanded for “establishing the need for public restrooms in the City (including a process for identifying locations and hours of operation).”[2]

Lava Mae Mobile Hygiene Units (2014)

San Francisco-based nonprofit organization Lava Mae launched a mobile hygiene service in 2014, offering showers and toilets to the homeless. By 2018 it had provided 50,000+ showers to 12,000+ individuals in San Francisco and other cities.[18][19]

Underpinning this effort was a goal to provide a level of “hospitality” characterized as “radical.” In an interview with Grateful Living, founder Doniece Sandoval described starting her organization after she “came across a young woman crying that she’d never be clean, and then . . . heard that the San Francisco Municipal Transit Authority was retiring old buses.” She said Lava Mae “began by converting public transportation buses into showers and toilets on wheels to deliver hygiene and rekindle dignity for unhoused neighbors in San Francisco.”[18][19]

In 2015, Sandoval noted to the San Francisco Chronicle that the service faced some challenges such as electrical glitches taking Lava Mae’s first bus out of rotation, and the difficulty of finding licensed bus drivers “adept at working with homeless people and willing to do it for $16 an hour.”[20]

In 2019, Sandoval told the Chronicle that the work was “rewarding on so many levels,” but that she was “exhausted” and stepping down as CEO. The nonprofit would reportedly rebrand as Lava Mae X and become a nonprofit accelerator.[21]

The Poop Patrol (2018)

In 2018, local media reported that San Francisco was launching a Poop Patrol comprising five Public Works staffers who would “begin patrolling the alleys around Polk Street and other hot spots in a vehicle equipped with a steam cleaner.”[8]

In 2019, coverage from The Times, a UK publication, noted that although San Francisco had “set up a ‘poop patrol’ of street cleaners to sanitise ‘hot zones’ . . . they [we]re struggling to keep up with the problem.”[22]

In 2024, the San Francisco Chronicle referred to the Poop Patrol as a “short-lived” initiative.[23]

Mobile Apps: SnapCrap and SolveSF (2018/2025)

In 2018, developer Sean Miller launched a free mobile app to let users photograph and report areas needing clean-up to the city’s 311 service. Miller told local media that his goal was to simplify the reporting process.[24][25]

According to SFGATE in 2018, a Public Works spokesperson “welcome[d] the new SnapCrap app as another way to help clean up the city.”[25]

SnapCrap received widespread media coverage in 2018.[26][27][28]

In 2025, a new app called SolveSF “g[ave] residents yet another option to file 311 complaints, just by snapping a photo and having the app do the rest.”[29] Local media reported mid-year that “changes to the 311 service w[ould] make it unaffordable to staff and maintain the old API,” creating uncertainty for the future of the app.[30]

“Code Brown” Cleanups (2020)

In 2023, local media reported on ongoing cleanup efforts by the SOMA West Community Benefit District, a nonprofit organization.[31]

On its website, SOMA West describes running “a robust, data-driven cleaning and maintenance program” in an area “bounded by 5th Street and 6th Street on the east, Minna Street and Folsom Street on the north, South Van Ness Avenue, and the U.S. Highway 101 Freeway on the west, and Townsend Street on the south.”[32]

They describe their overarching motivation as “improving the quality of life in western SOMA by creating a cleaner, safer, more vibrant neighborhood for all.”[33]

The San Francisco Standard reported (2023) that SOMA West had cleaned 617 “Code Browns” (instances of feces) in April 2020 during their first month of operations, and 3,771 Code Browns in April 2021, and that the organization had built its own 311-style reporting app for tracking purposes.[31]

In the same year (2023), the City and County of San Francisco reported that Community Benefit Districts were “vital to day-to-day essential services, including cleaning, activation and other community needs in specific neighborhoods.”[34]

As of January 29, 2026, SOMA West continues to solicit applications for cleaning ambassadors through its website.[35]

Looking Forward: 2025 and Beyond

Beyond the above-mentioned efforts, San Francisco has also been evaluating its street cleaning operations more broadly, with the Budget and Legislative Analyst’s Office publishing a Performance Audit of the Management of Street Cleaning by San Francisco Public Works in 2025. The audit and its attached written responses from Public Works, 311, and the Controller’s Office are available online, providing a sense of the challenges and complexities faced by the city in its sanitation efforts.[2]

Additional recent efforts not specifically focused on waste mitigation include a plan to “spread out [homeless] shelters more equitably.” In 2025, KQED reported on The One City Shelter Act, which it described as “part of a broader effort to address the shortage of shelter for [San Francisco’s] homeless population, and address concerns of Tenderloin and South of Market residents who sa[id] their neighborhoods already house more than their fair share.”[36]

While that effort was focused on homelessness more broadly, it is worth noting that, similar to the issue of homelessness, the issue of fecal waste on city sidewalks appears to be either less or more concentrated depending on location. For example, when the San Francisco Chronicle mapped top 311 complaints by neighborhood for 2025, they found that the Tenderloin “was the only neighborhood with human waste as its most common report.”[29]

Thus while the issue of public-space fecal waste does not appear to have been mitigated as of January 2026, it has provided a helpful case study for readers interested in better understanding what works, what does not, and why, with respect to homelessness and its associated challenges.

References

[1] See generally: “Home by the Bay,” SF.gov, accessed January 28, 2026, https://www.sf.gov/home-bay (presenting “[a]n equity-driven plan to prevent and end homelessness in San Francisco 2023-2028”).

[2] Budget and Legislative Analyst’s Office, “Performance Audit of the Management of Street Cleaning by San Francisco Public Works,” City and County of San Francisco Board of Supervisors, October 29, 2025, https://sfbos.org/sites/default/files/SF_BLA_Street_Cleaning_Final_Audit_Report_10.29.2025.pdf.

[3] Garrett Leahy, “Rejoice! Litter is down! (But sidewalk poop has shot up),” The San Francisco Standard, December 7, 2024, https://sfstandard.com/2024/12/07/san-franciscos-street-poop-problem-worse/.

[4] Mary Papenfuss, “Human feces map finds San Francisco’s homeless,” Reuters, December 31, 2014, https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyle/human-feces-map-finds-san-franciscos-homeless-idUSKBN0K90SN/.

[5] See infra: “The Pit Stop Program (2014).”

[6] SFNext: Fixing Our City Podcast Hosted by Laura Wenus, “Listen: How San Francisco is keeping poop off streets,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 23, 2022, https://www.sfchronicle.com/podcasts/article/Listen-Fixing-San-Francisco-s-poop-problem-with-17390422.php.

[7] Lizzie Johnson, “Complaints of syringes and feces rise dramatically in SF,” SFGATE, November 2, 2016, https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/Complaints-of-syringes-human-waste-rise-10459969.php.

[8] Heather Knight, “It’s no laughing matter—SF forming Poop Patrol to keep sidewalks clean,” San Francisco Chronicle, August 14, 2018, https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/heatherknight/article/It-s-no-laughing-matter-SF-forming-Poop-13153517.php.

[9] See generally: “311 Customer Service Center,” SF.gov, accessed January 28, 2026, https://www.sf.gov/departments--311-customer-service-center (explaining what 311 is and does).

[10] Katie Reilly, “San Francisco to Launch ‘Poop Patrol’ to Clean Up Streets Amid Homelessness Crisis,” TIME, August 15, 2018, https://time.com/5368610/san-francisco-poop-patrol-problem/.

[11] Eric Ting, “Don’t look now but San Francisco’s poop problem seems to be getting better,” SFGATE, July 14, 2021, https://www.sfgate.com/bay-area-politics/article/San-Francisco-poop-problem-stats-streets-feces-new-16311073.php.

[12] Office of the Controller City Performance Division, “FY25 Street & Sidewalk Maintenance Standards Annual Report,” SF.gov, October 20, 2025, https://media.api.sf.gov/documents/FY25_Annual_Street_Sidewalks_Report.pdf.

[13] John Coté, “S.F. has new data-driven solution to old S.F. problem: human excrement,” SFGATE, July 15, 2014, https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/S-F-takes-data-driven-approach-to-poop-5621384.php.

[14] Matier & Ross, “City’s latrine team tries to keep public toilets tolerable,” San Francisco Chronicle, September 1, 2015, https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/matier-ross/article/City-s-latrine-team-tries-to-keep-public-6479253.php?t=fe031a331fbaa6eec6&cmpid=twitter-premium.

[15] C.W. Nevius, “It’s time to raise a stink over public toilets,” San Francisco Chronicle, December 10, 2011, https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/nevius/article/It-s-time-to-raise-a-stink-over-public-toilets-2393868.php.

[16] Kelsey Oliver, “Study shows public restroom intervention reduced open defecation in San Francisco’s Tenderloin neighborhood,” UC Berkeley Public Health, September 27, 2022, https://publichealth.berkeley.edu/articles/spotlight/research/study-shows-public-restroom-intervention-reduced-open-defecation.

[17] Troy Barker et al., “Public toilets have reduced enteric pathogen hazards in San Francisco,” PLOS Water 2(8) (August 2, 2023), https://journals.plos.org/water/article?id=10.1371/journal.pwat.0000152.

[18] The Grateful Living Team, “Grateful Changemakers: Lava Mae,” Grateful Living, accessed January 29, 2026, https://grateful.org/grateful-changemakers-lava-mae/.

[19] Lava Mae, “Lava Mae Receives $1M Grant to Scale Service in Oakland and Berkeley,” PRWeb, June 15, 2018, https://www.prweb.com/releases/lava_mae_receives_1m_grant_to_scale_service_in_oakland_and_berkeley/prweb15558697.htm.

[20] Heather Knight, “Nonprofit providing showers for the homeless rolling along,” San Francisco Chronicle, September 8, 2015, https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/Nonprofit-providing-showers-for-the-homeless-6491695.php.

[21] Heather Knight, “Beloved SF homelessness nonprofit scales back as ‘devastating’ crisis takes toll,” San Francisco Chronicle, December 17, 2019, https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/heatherknight/article/Beloved-SF-homelessness-nonprofit-scales-back-as-14911174.php.

[22] Danny Fortson, “San Francisco’s ‘poop patrols’ fight a losing battle as homeless clog up streets of Billionaire City,” The Times, August 4, 2019, https://www.thetimes.com/uk/transport/article/san-franciscos-poop-patrols-fight-a-losing-battle-as-homeless-clog-up-streets-of-billionaire-city-8bw38dzs5?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=AWEtsqc_5kkLbLc1Son0U4ndNHzMgBiZzisuuZJxFxR6QYff0yDuPCBvQG_d&gaa_ts=697a13d0&gaa_sig=GpTNGpyoEMvqNOb1durr_yC8DGNHIVfKAE9y_H2LgbnJwMnL8F2LPkoS7l0xrpAV1Xq87yIfVSe3CgaUAdJuGg%3D%3D.

[23] St. John Barned-Smith, “ ‘On the lookout for turds’: S.F. sidewalk survey identifies city’s most scat-filled blocks,” San Francisco Chronicle, December 7, 2024, https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/poop-sf-city-street-19964427.php.

[24] Kiki Intarasuwan, “ ‘Snapcrap’ App Developer Hopes to Help Clean Up San Francisco Streets,” NBC BAY AREA, October 4, 2018, https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/snapcrap-app-developer-hopes-to-help-clean-up-san-francisco-streets/206975/.

[25] Amy Graff, “ ‘SnapCrap’ app invites San Francisco residents to report poop on city streets,” SFGATE, October 4, 2018, https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/SnapCrap-app-San-Francisco-poop-feces-dirty-street-13281837.php.

[26] Hannah Fry, “Snapcrap app aims to provide exposure to San Francisco’s public poop problem,” Los Angeles Times, October 8, 2018, https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-snapcrap-20181008-story.html.

[27] Jared Gilmour, “ ‘Snapcrap’ app asks San Francisco residents to take pictures of poop-covered streets,” The Sacramento Bee, October 3, 2018, https://www.sacbee.com/news/california/article219467495.html.

[28] Jeff Parsons, “ ‘Snapcrap’ lets people report human poo on the street to the authorities,” METRO, October 10, 2018, https://metro.co.uk/2018/10/10/snapcrap-lets-people-report-human-poo-on-the-street-to-the-authorities-8023279/.

[29] Danielle Echeverria, “S.F. residents filed nearly 800,000 complaints in 2025. Here’s what annoyed them most,” San Francisco Chronicle, January 12, 2026, https://www.sfchronicle.com/sf/article/311-wrapped-data-21279833.php.

[30] NBC Bay Area staff, “Solve SF app linked to city’s 311 may shut down after 5 months,” NBC BAY AREA, May 27, 2025, https://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/solve-sf-app-311-may-shut-down/3878068/.

[31] Liz Lindqwister, “ ‘Code brown’: An army of cleaners patrols SF’s filthiest streets,” The San Francisco Standard, June 13, 2023, https://sfstandard.com/2023/06/13/code-brown-doom-scooping-at-san-franciscos-scavenger-hunt-from-hell/.

[32] “About SOMA West,” SOMA WEST COMMUNITY BENEFIT DISTRICT, accessed January 29, 2026, https://somawestcbd.org/about.

[33] SOMA WEST COMMUNITY BENEFIT DISTRICT, accessed January 29, 2026, https://somawestcbd.org/.

[34] “Ensure Downtown is clean, safe, and inviting,” SF.gov, August 22, 2023, https://www.sf.gov/reports--august-2023--ensure-downtown-clean-safe-and-inviting.

[35] “Ambassadors,” SOMA WEST COMMUNITY BENEFIT DISTRICT, accessed January 29, 2026, https://somawestcbd.org/about/apply.

[36] Gilare Zada, “A New San Francisco Plan Would Spread Out Homeless Shelters More Evenly,” KQED, July 30, 2025, https://www.kqed.org/news/12050263/a-new-san-francisco-plan-would-spread-out-homeless-shelters-more-evenly.