Dumped rubbish spikes in Arun parks and beaches: council 'disappointed' and resident speaks out

Arun District Council said it was 'disappointed' by a spike of rubbish being dumped in parks and along the seafront.
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Due to the sunny weather and the easing of lockdown measures, Littlehampton and Bognor Regis' beaches have been busy.

But this has led to an increase in rubbish being left behind.

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Georgina Kirkup lives near Littlehampton seafront. While on a walk with her family to East Beach Green, they found lots of litter and 'overflowing bins' so they decided to collect it all up.

Georgina Kirkup and her family collected seafront rubbish on a trip to the beachGeorgina Kirkup and her family collected seafront rubbish on a trip to the beach
Georgina Kirkup and her family collected seafront rubbish on a trip to the beach

They managed to fill six carrier bags.

Georgina said she was concerned that visitors were coming from further afield to use Littlehampton's amenities, which was also putting people's health at risk.

She said: "We cannot leave our house and utilise our local beach during peak times as it is too busy to keep to social distancing rules.

"I’m very concerned that these visitors piling into our town will increase the number of COVID-19 cases, putting our community at risk.

Georgina Kirkup and her family collected seafront rubbish on a trip to the beachGeorgina Kirkup and her family collected seafront rubbish on a trip to the beach
Georgina Kirkup and her family collected seafront rubbish on a trip to the beach
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"We need to put pressure on our council to close the car parks again; we are heading towards a second peak."

A spokesman for the council said it had been urging residents to take their rubbish home on social media, put more bins in public spaces and upped rubbish collections there.

They said: "It is something we are working very hard to deal with via the specific and increased messaging, as well additional resources dedicated to emptying bins.

"We are disappointed that the public are not taking the rubbish home with them if they see that the bins are full.”

Georgina Kirkup and her family collected seafront rubbish on a trip to the beachGeorgina Kirkup and her family collected seafront rubbish on a trip to the beach
Georgina Kirkup and her family collected seafront rubbish on a trip to the beach
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On Thursday, James Walsh, leader of Arun District Council, addressed the issue in his weekly coronavirus update, shared on Facebook.

He said: "When you're visiting parks and the beach if the litter bins are too full - they are being emptied regularly - but if they are full and overflowing please take home your rubbish in your bag and dispose of it in your home dustbin."

Disposable barbecues have been a particular issue.

He said: "Please make sure that when you finish the use of them they are fully extinguished and are put away in a safe place and not somewhere where they might cause a fire or cause the bin to melt."

He also urged beachgoers to obey the red flags and signs on the beaches, particularly near the mouth of the River Arun where 'we've had two or three quite serious incidents of near drownings with people swimming too close to the river'.