Beach left in ‘disgusting’ state after bank holiday weekend
SUN-SEEKERS have been accused of “destroying” beauty spots after parks and beaches were left piled with litter over the bank holiday.
Barry Island, where thousands flocked to enjoy the warm weather, was covered in litter with pictures of overflowing bins and waste strewn across the sand.
Authorities said visitors left “unprecedented quanitites of rubbish” and showed a “complete disregard” for the popular location.
Community volunteers Friends of Barry Beaches shared pictures of the mess online after they walked the beach on Monday evening.
It had earlier been full of people enjoying the hottest early May bank holiday in history during the day and across the long weekend.
In a post on its Facebook page the group, which organises regular beach cleans, said: “At 6.30pm the beach was still full but signs of the litter people had discarded was clear to see already.
“The only word to describe the behaviour of these inconsiderate visitors is disgusting. What is wrong with you? If you had turned up this morning to a beach covered in rubbish, would you have stayed? The answer is no.
“You came to the beach to experience the beautiful sandy beach and sea in the sunshine and enjoy the delights of Barry Island. Please have the decency to leave it the way you found it.”
The post has since been shared almost 2,000 times.
A spokeswoman for the group said there was “still a long way to go in educating people”. She added: “Despite the recent publicity and public positive reaction to David Attenborough’s appeal on Blue Planet we clearly have a long way to go to educate many people in taking responsibility for the environment and our planet.”
Vale of Glamorgan council has said it will be increasing patrols to catch people responsible for littering.
Miles Punter, the authority’s director of environment and housing services, said: “Huge numbers of visitors flocked to Barry Island to enjoy the warm weather over the bank holiday weekend and unfortunately some have shown a complete disregard for one of the Vale’s most iconic locations.
“Unprecedented quantities of rubbish were left by day trippers and the council has had to bring in extra resources to deal with this problem. The clean-up operation began on Monday evening and resumed at 6.30am on Tuesday with staff being drafted in from other areas to help tackle the issue.
“Despite the best endeavours of our staff, bins occasionally become full in which case litter should be bagged and left as close to the bin as possible. There is never any excuse for leaving litter on the beach and, quite frankly, enough is enough.
“The council has carried out major improvement works at Barry Island in recent years to once again establish the area as a premier seaside resort and this kind of irresponsible behaviour will not be tolerated.
“We will be increasing our enforcement patrols over the summer period, with anyone found to be littering liable to be issued with a £75 fixed penalty notice, while they could also face possible prosecution. It may also be necessary to use our CCTV cameras to help identify offenders.”
Campaign group Keep Britain Tidy called on visitors to take their rubbish with them if bins reach capacity.
Chief executive Allison Ogden-Newton said: “On a gorgeous bank holiday thousands of us flock to our beaches and parks because they are beautiful, clean and great places to enjoy the sunshine with our families.
“But some people seem to think it is acceptable to walk away at the end of the day leaving their rubbish behind and destroying the very beauty they went there to enjoy. It is not – neither can we use the excuse that ‘the bins were full.’ If the bins are full then you should take your rubbish home with you. You took it there, you take it away again.
“Those thoughtless people who leave their litter are damaging our environment for everyone.”
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