Bristol’s main city centre park was left strewn with rubbish after it was taken over by hundreds of people.
Bins across the city - and not just in Castle Park - are overflowing after an Easter Saturday of wall-to-wall sunshine and warm temperatures.
It seems like half of Bristol went to the park to soak up the sun, but some appear to have left their rubbish behind, or near overflowing bins.
Russ Leith, from the Friends of Castle Park, claims the city council and Bristol Waste should have organised more bins and more collections.
At Castle Park, hundreds of people turned out for the annual ‘420 event’ - a global counterculture day, marked mainly by the mass smoking of cannabis in public.
The event in Castle Park saw a pop-up soundsystem, local music acts performing, and one group even brought a sofa plus lampshade to the party.
The aftermath though saw rubbish strewn across the park, bottles and cans and barbecues left lying near overflowing bins, making the area a minefield for people walking - especially with dogs.
Mr Leith said the council should have been aware that the event was happening.
“Despite advanced warning of the impending 420 event, and an early request for extra bins, as well as their experience from last year, Bristol Waste were once again caught out in Castle Park,” he said.
“The 420 revellers came to the park in large numbers and left leaving their predictable trail of rubbish behind.
“Come on Bristol Waste, can we get it right next year?” he asked.
“The event will be on 20, April 2020 - you have over 360 days to plan, prepare and design a strategy for dealing with Bristol Central’s annual landfill site.”
He also pointed out that the waste meant Castle Park - and many other parks around Bristol - were now dangerous for pet dogs.
Last year, Mr Leith’s dog injured her paw in the park on broken glass - causing a £1,000 vet’s bill.
Leave litter by a full bin in the park and you will be fined £100 warns Bristol City Council
“At the moment, Castle Park is not a safe environment for dogs,” he said. “The amount of litter is excessive, and there is a lot of broken glass.
“Bristol Waste is working hard to clear it up, but glass that is embedded in the grass will be a hazard for some time yet,” he added.
Last summer, the issue of people leaving Bristol’s parks full of waste was a hot topic for council chiefs, with the council issuing a warning to people that leaving rubbish Leave litter by a full bin in the park and you will be fined £100 warns Bristol City Council, and counted as littering, as the council’s enforcement officers began issuing on-the-spot fines for leaving rubbish behind.
People were urged to take their rubbish home with them, or find the nearest bin that wasn’t full.
