Fly-tipping in Strathaven is “spiralling out of control” as more and more rubbish is being abandoned in the area’s rural locations.
The News have highlighted the issue for a number of weeks, yet concerned residents have hit out at the “laziness” of people who continue to dump their rubbish in the area.
Strathaven resident Linda Adam says the issue is “spiralling out of control” as others “fail to look after our beautiful countryside.”
She told the News : “It’s getting worse and worse, it’s spiralling out of control.
“There was a big increase in rubbish being dumped at the side of roads and at beauty spots when the dumps were closed due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“But now they are open, the problem still exists, people are failing to look after our beautiful countryside.
“And I think lockdown is playing a part in it, as there seems to be a new form of fly-tipping by youngsters leaving their party camp sites behind after they go home. Campfires, tents, sleeping bags, cans, glass bottles and food wrappers are all left at their backsides on a weekly basis.
“It’s disgusting and saddening.”
Last week, we told how over a four day period, two separate fly-tipping incidents were spotted by residents in the local area, with more further afield.
Nearby Powbrone Burn was a sight for sore eyes as “mindless vandals” left behind the remains of a camp site, with a make-shift fire an abandoned tent, bags of rubbish, food and plastic tarpaulin strewn across the land.
And in the early hours of last Thursday morning, a massive heap of earth, rubble and scrap were ditched just off of the A71.
And those who fly-tip were slammed by Councillor Graeme Campbell, he added: “Fly tipping has been an issue across rural Avondale for longer than I’ve been a councillor.
“While South Lanarkshire Council is not responsible for the fly tipping itself, unfortunately in the majority of cases, it falls on the council or land owner to deal with the aftermath of what is disgusting criminal behaviour.
“In my 13-plus years experience as an Avondale councillor, I’ve always felt South Lanarkshire Council have taken every instance of fly tipping seriously.
“The council has always arranged to remove the discarded items within a reasonable timescale but I would remind everyone that fly tipping costs the local council tax payer tens of thousands each year and this is money that could be being spent on social work, education and services supporting our communities, rather than cleaning up behind criminals.”
Alistair McKinnon from the council said: “The majority of residents in South Lanarkshire behave responsibly and bin their litter, but there remains a minority who seem to have a callous and selfish disregard for their neighbours and communities.
“We did recently investigate complaints around littering as part of wider concerns about anti-social behaviour on land off Glassford Road in Strathaven.
“This area, like many reported to us, isn’t in council ownership. However we sent a team to investigate if there was any action we could take to remind the land owner of their responsibilities and found that the majority of litter and debris had in fact been cleared.
“We would continue to encourage residents to report litter or persistent offenders to us on 0303 123 1015 or through the ‘report a problem’ form on our website.
“This allows us to monitor issues and build a picture of where any additional action might be needed, including the issuing of £80 spot fines to anyone caught dropping litter in a public place.”
