Vapes, broken glass, empty bottles & clothing among items cleared from Irvine Beach volunteers
Volunteer clean up crews in Irvine have been tidying the area after the sun brought large crowds to the coastline.
Last updated 2nd Jun 2023
Local clean up crews in Irvine say they’ve been left feeling ‘broken’ after filling dozens of binbags from Irvine beach on the same week it was given an award.
Irvine beach was among 52 areas given the Keep Scotland Beautiful award this week for its appeal, cleanliness and accessibility.
However, that wouldn’t be the case without the volunteers who have filled nearly 100 bags this week containing broken glass, empty bottles, disregarded clothing & towels, and hundreds of disposable vapes.
The warm weather has brought crowds in large numbers to the west coast, with all of Ayrshire being the desired destination for people in the central belt.
The Irvine Clean Up crew have been out at the crack of dawn every day this week cleaning up, and are finding it difficult to celebrate the award when they see the beach the following mornings.
Jen Pless is among the volunteers. She says it’s been worth the work to keep the beach clean but is wanting to highlight the growing problem of vapes being left, and encourage everyone to take their rubbish away.
She tells Greatest Hits Radio: “It’s great to see the beach busy and people enjoying themselves, it’s what it’s here for.
“But unfortunately, this morning, it was more plastic than sand in most places. We collected 41 sacks of litter this morning alone, and that is a huge amount for such a small stretch of beach.
“It’s amazing to get the award, because it’s a lot of work that goes into it and a lot of collaboration between different groups. Then you see these scenes and you feel a little bit broken about the situation, but it happens time and time again, and I’m never surprised with the mess.
“Something has to change. I don’t know if that requires more legislation or people to be fined more and have people enforcing the litter laws that exist, but it really does have to change because to many people aren’t respecting the area.
“Yesterday we picked up about 48 vapes, and today was probably around 60 at least. Never mind the fact they are colourful and attractive to children, and animals here. They are all full of batteries, wires, toxic chemicals and they shouldn’t be in the sea.”