Astonishing 100 tonnes of rubbish left at seafront

Residents and visitors flocking to the city’s beaches have left an astonishing 100 tonnes of rubbish on the seafront since the outbreak of the recent warm weather.

In just 17 days, our street cleansing staff have had to clear the weight in rubbish of 50 family sized cars from the seafront.

Put another way, that’s the equivalent in weight of 100,000 1kg bags of sugar. 

Despite repeated calls from the council for people to bin their rubbish responsibly or take it home, some residents and tourist are still leaving waste on the beach or dumping it beside an already full bin.

Councillor leader Phélim Mac Cafferty said: “The amount of rubbish the council has collected over the last two and a half weeks is off the scale. 

“Hard-working council teams say the amount of waste being collected on the busiest days on the seafront has almost doubled since before lockdown began.

“These shocking figures are a strong reminder that keeping our seafront clean is a huge daily struggle.”

Cllr Mac Cafferty added: “There are now more than 500 bins along the seafront which are being emptied more frequently by council teams, so there’s really no excuse for someone not being able to find a bin that isn’t full. 

“Littering is an offence and if you litter you can expect a fine, which can be as expensive as £2,500.”

Cllr Mac Cafferty said: “Our message is simple. If you really can’t find a bin then take your rubbish home. Leaving rubbish on the beach or beside a bin is anti-social. Don’t do it. 

“We're all blessed with beautiful beaches and it’s up to us all to make sure they’re kept clean.”

The worst day was during the school half term on Wednesday 2 June when the sun blazed and a massive 10.48 tonnes (or 10,480 kg) of waste was lifted from the beach and seafront. That’s three times the normal amount.

However, two days later when it rained, just 1.88 tonnes (1,880 kg) was collected as the crowds stayed away.

Even on days that were just warm, like Sunday 6 June, the figure was more than seven tonnes.

On the 11 hottest days over the 17-day period, the figure for collected rubbish totalled more than 77 tonnes, or the weight of 77,000 bags of sugar.

The average over the whole period was almost six tonnes every day.