A BOURNEMOUTH resident has hit out at the council, arguing their response to littering in the town is “not acceptable”.
Brian Sutcliffe, a member of litter picking group Dorset Devils, has made several complaints to BCP Council in relation to littering in the Triangle, and in particular the number of cigarette butts lining the streets.
He said: “There is an issue with littered cigarette butts. Cigarette butts are in fact one of the most common sources of plastic waste that is polluting our rivers and oceans.”
Although Brian regularly clears the cigarette butts with the Dorset Devils, he has argued more support is needed by BCP Council and suggests more litter bins are added to the area.
He said: “What litter pickers cannot do is clear up the large volumes of smoking product waste that contaminates our local streets.
“I make a complaint and the council then directs one of the litter pickers working in the town centre to clean up. This is not acceptable. The council should clean the area proactively on a daily basis, not only in response to complaints.
“BCP actually have a duty under the Environmental Protection Act to clear this litter and to keep the streets clean.”
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In response to Brian’s concerns, Councillor Nicola Greene, portfolio holder for council priorities and delivery, said: “BCP Council, alongside its contractor, work hard to ensure our roads and footpaths are kept as litter free as possible. Positive public behaviour plays a vital role in enabling the council to achieve this.
"Our Cleaner, Greener Safer programme alongside our Leave Only Footprints campaign is all about investment in and promotion of positive activities including recruiting seasonal additional cleansing resource, replacing deteriorated bins and encouraging individuals to behave responsibility such as making use of the over 3000 provided public litter bins, which when stubbed out can include cigarette butts. Litter bins within The Triangle are emptied daily by our teams.
“Litter is everyone’s responsibility we need to work together to build a community that cares for and has pride in our place.”
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