Litter causes stink at Ganavan Sands
A side-effect of the recent good weather has been the amount of rubbish that has been left behind at Ganavan Sands.
Beer bottles, plastic bags and cigarette butts were scattered along the beach.
And, as a result of ‘mindless vandalism’, Argyll and Bute Council has taken the decision to close the toilets at night. They will now be open from 8am until 8pm.
Councillor for Oban South and the Isles Roddy McCuish said: ‘Due to the extremely good weather, Ganavan has been a lot busier than usual, which is a great thing. I would just appeal to the public to respect Ganavan and use the litter bins and to leave it as tidy as possible.’
A photograph was posted on social media to a public group highlighting the issue recently. A number of people commented saying they saw ‘youths’ leaving behind rubbish and throwing bottles in the sea.
However, Dougie Graham, who runs Dougie Dan’s snack van at Ganavan, said: ‘I don’t like that they are blaming the kids. It’s not just the kids.’
Another problem with the increase in visitors has been the state of the public toilets.
Dougie said: ‘I do my own cleaning. It’s a facility that we should all have a wee bit of respect for, but they need to be on a regular cleaning schedule. It’s hard for me to explain to the tourists that they are not mine.’
An Argyll and Bute Council spokesperson said: ‘It is shameful that people would choose to litter anywhere, let alone on an award-winning beach as beautiful as Ganavan.
‘Bins at the beach are emptied every day. However, in good weather, our beauty spots attract more visitors and bins can fill up fast. If bins are full, people are asked to please take their litter away with them.
‘The toilets at the beach are cleaned daily, and we have recently taken the decision to lock them between 8pm and 8am due to an ongoing issue with mindless vandalism.
‘We are grateful to everyone who takes proper care of our beauty spots and we urge others to please do the same.’