Shocking images show piles of rubbish taking over much-loved Glasgow park
SHOCKING images show piles of rubbish scattered across a popular Glasgow park.
Environmental groups joined forces in Glasgow Green this week to reduce the huge amount of waste left behind by drinks manufacturers.
The park, particularly at the riverbanks, appeared to be covered in bottles, cans, plastic bags and other items which volunteers were in the process of clearing away.
This event was part of the Deposit Return Litter Survey to promote the upcoming deposit return scheme, which will hopefully impact how much litter is needlessly dropped.
So far more than 10,000 items have been logged from 123 surveys.
The most found item in the surveys so far has been metal drinks cans (29%) followed by plastic drinks bottles (27%) - but overall, drinks containers made up nearly two-thirds of items found by the groups.
The Association for the Protection of Rural Scotland (APRS) was joined by the Marine Conservation Society (MCS), which has been carrying out similar surveys on Scotland’s beaches and found that 95% of rubbish found there is drinks containers.
Jo McFarlane, public engagement and education manager at APRS, said: “The initial results of our litter survey show that nearly two-thirds of littered items are drinks containers.
“This shows how important it is for ministers to keep to their promises and bring in the deposit return scheme.
“In countries with deposit return, drinks-related litter is almost unheard of. Deposit return cannot come soon enough.
“APRS are still looking for volunteers to help with our citizen science surveys, which will help show the difference that deposit return will make to levels of litter.
“Our plan is to run it for a year after the start of deposit return and see how much has changed in our streets and green spaces. If you want to take part please get in touch with us."
Kirsty Crawford, Jo McFarlane, Marion Montgomery, Julia Anne Macdonough and Stella Hawthorne of Friends of Clydesdale (Image: Stewart Attwood)
They were joined by Paws for Plastic, a dog walking group which uses their daily walks to pick up litter and keep their animals – as well as local wildlife – safe from rubbish.
Its founder Marion Montgomery said: “With over 13.5 million dogs in the UK alone, imagine the positive impact if we all got involved.
“So many animals, including dogs, are hurt by litter, so we remove it to protect them.
“We hope that the deposit return will result in fewer people dropping litter, and so reducing the amount of potentially harmful litter, including glass, being dropped.”
Ann-Marie Yates from Trails and Tails said: “I have picked up litter with my dog on land and by the sea for many years and it has really brought home to me how many bottles are discarded. Just recycling plastic bottles will have a massive impact on the environment we live in.
“Deposit return schemes are the way forward. Encouraging people to recycle their metal drinks cans, plastic and glass bottles and discouraging people from throwing away items is the easiest win-win.”