Warm weather yesterday (July 30) brought crowds to isle beaches but the recurring issue of rubbish left on the sands and pavements was evident yet again.
In Margate and at Viking Bay rubbish had piled up on promenades, next to large dustbins, and was noticeable on beaches.
One resident said: “The rubbish is an ongoing issue and made worse with them taking all the bins away in (Broadstairs) high street.
“We need better bins that the seagulls can’t get in and in the summer, more collections.”
The resident also suggested use of a street cleaning machine.
Others have said people should be responsible and either bin their rubbish or take it home while some have suggested additional bin emptying in the early evening and more robust fining for those leaving their rubbish behind.
Thanet council says there are 100 extra bins along the coastline this year and 30 large mixed recycling bins as part of the annual Beach Management Plan.
A spokesperson added: “Our Waste and Recycling teams work extended hours during the summer months. Dedicated cleaning crews are on duty every day from 6am to 6pm, extended to 8pm when required, emptying the bins on our most popular beaches twice every day and collecting litter. This summer, we have three additional crews in place.
“We also employ four litter pickers who cover the four main beaches: Margate Main Sands, Joss Bay and Viking Bay in Broadstairs, and Ramsgate Main Sands.”
Enforcement officers are tasked with patrolling main beaches and promenades and talking to people about disposing of rubbish responsibly.
The spokesperson added: “(Enforcement officers) take part in litter picks, and so far this year, have given out 600 litter sacks which were used to collect large quantities of rubbish. Community groups also fund litter bag stations at a range of beach locations.
“We use social media throughout the summer, encouraging people not to litter, and to take their rubbish home with them if the bins are full.
Volunteers play an important role, and we are grateful for the time they dedicate to beach litter picks. Bay inspectors also support us by issuing rubbish bags to the public, speaking to people who litter and monitoring how full bins are.
“We continue to work with partners and community groups on campaigns to remind people to take responsibility for their own waste and respect the environment around them.”
This summer’s litter does not, however, resemble the mountains left on beaches in 2018 and 2019. In 2018, Thanet council collected over 5 tonnes of litter from isle parks, streets and beaches, some 3.5 tonnes of that was just from beaches.
Workers also cleared 100 tonnes of fly-tipped rubbish, emptied 900 tonnes of rubbish from bins and cleared 840,00 tonnes of detritus during street sweeping.
The cost of that cleaning and litter collections to Thanet District Council was £1.9million.
Carl Hudson’s picture shows a large rubbish skip full to overflowing.
The fact that it’s surrounded by bags of rubbish suggests that beach users bagged up their rubbish and made some attempt to dispose if it.
Full bins need emptying.
Andrew
Or when the people found the bin was full they took their rubbish home. But no that’s fly tip by the bin and blame tdc
Rubbish people dropping rubbish-no excuse for either not finding a bin that isn’t full, or just taking it home & disposing of it yourself.
Bins are overflowing no lessons learned from previous years Labour council not up to job
Labour, Conservative or UKIP – it makes no difference.
The same problems reoccur every year.
When the sun is shining, people flock to the beaches. The bins do not get emptied sufficiently late in the day. Most of the rubbish piles up between 6pm and 8pm when most people leave the beach.
It then stays there overnight – to be scavenged by the gulls and spread everywhere.
100 extra bins is clearly not enough. Each of the locations pictured show only one large bin. Two or three are required. More especially when they are being filled by the beach cleaners who are dragging many full sacks of rubbish of the beach . . .
Thee silly little street bins are designed for fag packets, sweet wrappers and crisp packets – not the volumes of picnics, cases of beer, takeaways, etc. that are actually left behind.
“Workers also cleared 100 tonnes of fly-tipped rubbish, emptied 900 tonnes of rubbish from bins and cleared 840,00 tonnes of detritus during street sweeping.”
What is the timescale for the collection of this tonnage?
Is the 840,00 figure correct?
Just a thought, perhaps the Bay Inspectors could report the amount of rubbish and contact the correct Cleaning Team to action the immediate removal ?
All very well but it makes for very inefficient use of resources, as you effectively need additional staff and vehicles etc to be on standby waiting for the call, or they leave a job they are doing to attend elsewhere and are forever on the move. So needs more money to achieve it.
We live in a country where chucking the packaging from your drive through meal out the window is pretty common , people empty the car of rubbish in car parks, can’t be bothered to return trolleys at supermarkets. Just look at the amount of rubbish along our A roads and motorways.
So long as people can do these things and not be fined or some other penalty, they’ll carry on, to expect them to clean up on a beach just ain’t gonna happen.
The borough either needs to spend sufficient amounts to deal with the problem, charged in some manner to the visitors , or take it out of the council tax revenues, or just accept it’s the price of being a beach resort that attracts a significant number of the irresponsible.
Sorry but TDC are to blame.The bins are always full by lunchtime any time of the year and arent emptied until the following day.Then the litter blows up all the side streets or in the sea.So the local residents get all the litter along with the unswept roads and industrial levels of weeds.Tesco,Lidl,Wairose,KFC and McDonalds have dreadful levels of litter in their hedgerows and car parks and are never taken to task.TDC have such low standards and I can honestly say Thanet is the dirtiest place I have ever lived.Half the drains are silted up.Its not rocket science,more bins please.
No, scummy people throwing their rubbish on the floor are to blame. Doesn’t matter how many bins TDC put out, or how often they are emptied-these people will drop it regardless. We have seen plenty of pictures in the past of empty or half empty bins, with rubbish dropped 20 foot from them.
Again-even if every bin there was full, why would you choose to just throw your garbage on the floor, rather than take it home & dispose of it, or use a bin off the beach?
Davo
TDC are not to blame.
It’s people that either bring stuff with them to the beach and than dump their waste. When I was a kid our parents took the waste back home with them.
People in this country are just lazy and entitled, with an attitude of being lazy and entitled. The bins are full not my fault so I’ll but my rubbish on the floor vy the bin. I don’t care if the seagulls rip it open as I won’t be here to see the mess.
People can blame tdc as much as they want BUT it’s not TDC who litter it’s the lazy self entitled people.
If a bin is full take your rubbish home. It’s that simple.
Dave
I agree with your last paragraph that thanet is the dirtiest place you have lived. I agree 100%.
I travel alot and thanet is depressing dirty and I can’t wait to retire and move but the work keeps me here.
But we disagree on who’s fault it is. You say tdc I say the public.
Graffiti is out of control in thanet who’s fault tdc or the scum that do the Graffiti ?
Why should my taxes pay to clean up litter and Graffiti that done by scumbags ? I just except thanet is a dirty run down area with rich pockets of places. Hence once we retire we are off.
Funny in the old days people wanted to retire to the seaside. Now most of my friends and family can’t wait to move away. Some already have.
TDC do not drop litter. People drop litter. TDC do not fly-tip. People fly-tip. My council taxes go to pay for TDC to pick up other people’s rubbish because they cannot be bothered to find a bin, take it home or take it to the tip properly. And it’s not just tourists. Blame the real culprits.
If you want drains cleared and weeds sprayed then tell KCC. They are the ones responsible for drains and weeds.
Went to Berlin during Euros.A city of 3 million people plus football fans.Spotless.Upon arriving at platform 1 and Broadstairs station approach,I saw more litter than Germanys capital city.
TDC yet again are shown to be totally useless in whatever they are responsible for. Whether the brain-dead bottom feeders in the council chamber or the clock-watching jobsworths who I’m sure are either sitting on their backsides all day or, more likely, working from home. (For working from home, read watching TV on the sofa).
Rubbish bins can’t be emptied because the so called relevant employees are all standing around chatting or sunbathing at Margate tip.
Don’t believe me? Book yourself a slot at the tip and go see for yourself.
Alex Peters
Isn’t margate tip run by kkc ?
Yep nothing to do with TDC.
If you knew what you were talking about you’d know that KCC run the tips. I go there regularly and only ever see KCC employees working there, running the place like they should be.
Margate tip employees are not employed by tdc, they are kcc and nothing to do with tdc employees who are out clearing the rubbish for 10 1/2 hours a day, 7 days a week. The mechanical road sweeper is out for the same hours.
What happened to the new “solar” bins which would send signals back to TDC HQ when they needed emptying ? The only on s I have seen have been completely overflowing like all other bins when it’s warm out.
Years ago we filled a black bin bag with toys, towels etc. ready for a trip to the beach. In the rush to get out I accidentally grabbed another one destined for the dustbin. I guess I was ahead of my time in that respect.
Really let myself down though by lugging the damn thing home at the end of the day.
I don’t think I even expected to find a bin big enough to to accommodate a week’s rubbish without exposing it to the gulls. It’s just anathema to some of us to leave rotting food, plastic containers and wotnot out in the open. Yeah yeah, TDC need to be as efficient as possible and to deal with the reality. But how can people casually leave their detritus on the beach or the pavement? It’s gross and so anti-social.
And this is what i pay my council tax-FOR. UTTER SHAME.
Love how you all attack one another, makes for a good read. When really, the blame could go either way. When you go on holidays what’s it like in tourist hot spots? I can only speak from where I’ve been. But tenerife, turkey, Greece, Zante etc.. no rubbish anywhere, despite there being even more people than what we get down our way. You frequently see bin men and even lorries all hours of the day and the amount of bins, even the design of them is much better than here. Why can it not be done here too?
Not arguing either as I know I’ll be attacked for going on holidays or seeking like I’m defending people who litter which to be clear, I’m not.
Just my observation.
Its not just the beach areas either.The litter all over Thanet is apalling.My road has not seen a council broom in the 12 years I have lived here.The bin men every Thursday leave a mess all down my road.The weeds and kerb growth are onindustrial levels.There has been a tube of caulk on a Ramsgate roundabout for 3 years.I drive past it everyday.There are traffic islands so overgrown with detritus and 3 foot weeds you cant work out where the kerbs are.
I drive all over the South East as part of my job.Believe me no where is as filthy as Thanet or even comes close.
If you leave a place looking like a dump,certain people will treat it as a dump.
Ditto that Dave, my road has 84 houses in it, and about a dozen, or 15 at the beginning are tenanted, and for some reason Velcro seems to baffle them! Last week there were several soiled nappies from one, due to their Black Seagull Proof bag not being fastened properly, they are still there, disgusting. Haven’t seen a street cleaner for years, the last time there was one we held a Street Party!
Didn’t we all talk about this a few weeks ago and come to the conclusion that we just need more refuse collecting?