Waste piles up as visitors cool off at weir

This mound of discarded litter was left at a popular beauty spot in Bath amid the heatwave.

Crowds usually descend on Warleigh Weir in Claverton in good weather, with visitors coming to cool off in the water.

Despite repeated pleas for visitors to take their rubbish with them and to not travel by car, mounds of discarded trash was left at the beauty site and cars were parked all along the A36.

A picture taken at 7.30am on Tuesday shows the rubbish piled up by the toilets at the site.

Owner Johnny Palmer said: “The weir is an accessible spot for people to come and enjoy the countryside but we ask people one thing – leave no trace. If people see rubbish at the weir they should pick it up, even if it’s not theirs and stop whinging and complaining on social media.”

On the Warleigh Weir Facebook page, Mr Palmer said the idea of removing the loos has been mentioned as people seemed to dump rubbish by them.

The official Facebook page said in a post: “For some unknown reason people appear to think toilets are a place to dispose of rubbish. These toilets are provided at no cost to site users, on private land which people are invited to use at no cost. Please respect the land and use the toilets for what they are intended for.

“And if you care about Warleigh, please make up for those that don’t by taking rubbish that isn’t yours. Small actions from lots of people make a huge difference.”

Not only has the site been plagued with rubbish issues, cars have been parking on both sides of the A36, with the main road at points becoming a single track.

He said: “I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – the weir is not a car-friendly place. People need to walk, cycle or use a boat to get here. Despite this, it has been lovely to see people enjoying the countryside in the good weather.”