Litter spoiling Dumbarton foreshore is to be scrutinised in a 'citizen's science' survey later this month.

An environmental group which has already cleared a mountain of rubbish from the shore will scour the beach next to Havoc Meadow and log what they find before binning it.

Friends of Dumbarton Foreshore are carrying out the citizen science litter survey on Sunday April 14 for Keep Scotland Beautiful's Upstream Battle campaign.

The group is one of 16 selected from 40 to take part in a year-long survey of shore litter, leading to targeted campaigning aimed at reducing specific sources of litter.

Zoe Weir, who started the group in January last year, said that based on last year's shore litter, they expect to find a great deal of flushed waste, such as cotton buds and sanitary wear.

She added: "It seems some folk mistakenly think that anything they flush down the loo gets filtered out - this is not the case.

"People need to realise that their loo is not a wet bin - only pee, paper and poo should be going around the bend in your loo!

"If you put other things down there, it literally comes back in with the tide.

"Another thing we see regularly is balloons - whether helium or rubber, these things are a menace to both marine and terrestrial animals, and are the biggest litter killer.

"At this time of year, lambs get strangled by plastic balloon ribbons.

"When they fall in the sea, balloons look like jellyfish, so dolphins and turtles eat them and often die. We are asking the public to choose alternatives, or at least make sure they go in the bin."

Zoe said there has been a problem with broken glass on the shore next to Levengrove, but the council have provided glass recycling bins there now, to help protect the many children and dogs who enjoy this spot.

She added: "The group was started in January 2018 by myself and now has a pool of about 30 local volunteers who drop in and out.

"We cover a 3km stretch of shore from Havoc Bay and Meadow to past Castlegreen.

"It's quite a social event, offering a chance to chat or just enjoy the beautiful backdrop of the Clyde and the Rock.

"We tend to pick for an hour each weekend, although some keen folk do solo picks in between!

"The council provide us with all our equipment, as well as taking away our collected rubbish."

In addition to the usual plastic and sanitary debris, the group has found some unusual items, including a fox skull, a 100-year-old coin, an intact crisp packet dated January 1992 and a dead four-foot python in a sack.