Rubbish and waste left on private dunes
PILES of bricks, broken glass and other rubbish have been found dumped in dunes on Aberavon beach.
The massive pile of waste, including an ice box, numerous glass bottles, plastic sheeting, bedding, shopping bags and rusty broken scissors can be seen covering an area of dunes on private land behind the Naval Social Club in Purcell Avenue, Port Talbot.
The mound of mess was spotted by Sian Evans when she was walking her dog on the beach on Thursday.
Sian sent the images to Surfers Against Sewage Port Talbot, a group that carries out regular litter picks at the beach, who said the find was “not a new thing”.
Beach clean volunteer Rachel Edwards, 37, said she recently filled two large rubbish bags with bottles and plastic cups from a “small area” of the beach.
“I was there on Saturday [April 3] with my husband and children and there were kids partying in the dunes.
“It’s not a new thing, that level of mess, but I haven’t seen it that bad over recent months.
“Since lockdown has started to lift we’ve just seen tons and tons of rubbish around – fires, cans, bottles, tents, barbecues, it’s everywhere.
“The level of mess and rubbish is just increasing tenfold,” she said.
Rachel, who carries out regular litter picks with her family along Aberavon Beach as part of the Surfers Against Sewage group, said she wants to see people enjoying the beach but asks them to take their rubbish home with them.
“It’s lighter when they’ve drunk it so they should be able to take it home with them.
“The council has said that people can bag it up and leave it next to bins as well.
“The problem we’ve got on the dunes is the sheer mess from parties, with tents left there where youths have had an allnighter and ditched it,” she added.
The group is looking for volunteers to join them on beach litter picks, for which all pickers and bags are provided.
Another recent find by Rachel was a wardrobe that had been dragged to the beach to burn on a bonfire.
“I dread to think what we’ll see in the summer months. As soon as the sun comes out you see them dragging stuff over and leaving it behind,” she added.
As the weather improves and lockdown restrictions ease, many seaside communities in Wales have seen an increase in littering over recent weeks.
In Swansea, huge crowds left bottles, plastic and other waste on Swansea beach last week and damage was caused to a beachfront bar.
“It’s just a real shame,” Rachel added. “It’s local and private individuals like us that are keeping on top of it but it’s the same every day.
“If there’s a little bit of sunshine, the next day it’s covered again.”
Neath Port Talbot Council confirmed that the waste pictured is not on council-owned land.