A DUMBARTON man has got so frustrated with the state of Balloch Country Park that he’s taken to joining other locals in cleaning up the rubbish themselves.
Maurice Donohue visits the park every morning to walk his dogs, but has recently begun removing the piles of rubbish that were left behind by visitors the night before.
The Reporter has told recently of the rise in anti-social behaviour at the park – which some residents say has become a “no go zone” because of the disorder caused by yobbish visitors to the village.
Two teenagers have been taken to hospital with serious injuries already this summer as a result of separate incidents in the park.
Maurice told the Reporter: “It’s just so sad to see the amount of litter, rubbish, debris – whatever you want to call it – strewn about the park.
“I’ve been helping to tidy up with another volunteer we meet early in the morning. It’s just deplorable.
“It’s a beautiful part of our country and it’s just getting spoiled. The amount of bad behaviour is ridiculous.
“We’ve been down clearing up the aftermath and trying to help the guys who are doing a great job upkeeping the park.”
Mr Donohue - a well-known face in the area through his work with the Sporting Memories Foundation Scotland and for his years of work organising athletic events around Dumbarton and the Vale, called for an “intervention” from the authorities to try and tackle the issue, and for signs to be put up throughout the park warning people of the penalties for littering.
“It gets you so annoyed seeing what’s going on,” he added.
“Hopefully people and the powers that be can do something and there can be intervention and the right action taking place.”
On Thursday, British Transport Police announced plans to step up officer patrols at Balloch railway station and nearby in a bid to nip anti-social behaviour in the bud after revealing police had dealt with 36 incidents of anti-social behaviour in the area since April.
A West Dunbartonshire Council spokesperson said: “We are always disappointed to find litter left behind by visitors to our parks, and we carry out regular inspections to ensure our area is clean and tidy.
“Any discarded rubbish is removed on a daily basis, with all litter bins emptied too.
“We continue to encourage all residents and visitors to do the right thing and dispose of waste appropriately, either in the many onsite bins, their household bins or at one of our recycling centres.”
Meanwhile, it’s been reported that seagulls have targeted the bins behind a new chippy in the centre of Balloch.
Photos posted online showed litter spread across the ground at the rear of the Blue Lagoon on Balloch Road, but the owners said the mess had been cleared up as quickly as possible the next morning.
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