A 15^th century church tower in the Drenthe town of Meppel is being used to test a special water-repellent coating to stop people urinating against its walls, broadcaster Nos says on Thursday.

Similar coatings, which are said to spray urine back at its rightful owner, are already being used in San Francisco and Hamburg to good effect.

Urine penetrates the old bricks, causing both damage and smell. If caught, peeing in public in the Netherlands carries a fine of €130.

‘People who are drunk or just lazy don’t realise how disgusting it is to pee against someone else’s wall,’ Eduard Annen, a Meppel councilor who is campaigning against public urination in the town, told broadcaster Nos. The paint, he said, is ‘a solution, but not the solution.’

Dutch company Orange Nano took 18 months to develop the PeeBack paint, the Parool reported earlier this year. The splash back effect is created by silicum dioxide, a combination of tiny particles of glass and sand.

The company told Nos that several other local authorities and a premier league football club are also considering using the paint.