A Loch Lomond community council and MSP have called for action from the Scottish Government after the recent heatwaved plunged villages into chaos - yet again. 

Labour MSP Jackie Baillie sent a letter to the Scottish Government minister responsible for national parks, Lorna Slater, after an influx of visitors saw resident of villages, such as Luss, complain of dangerously parked cars; bins left overflowing; antisocial behaviour fuelled by drinking and drug-taking; and jetskiers causing chaos at the shore.

Ms Baillie said: “This isn’t a new problem and should be no surprise to Argyll and Bute Council and the National Park.

"What is important though is that action is taken and that is why I have written to Lorna Slater, whose ministerial portfolio covers national parks for help.

“Local residents should not be expected to have to put up with this chaos every time there is a sunny day.

"They live here and deserve to feel safe and secure in their homes. It is not good enough for the people here to be left to pick up the pieces.

“At the shore, jetskiers have engaged in extremely dangerous behaviour in close proximity to swimmers as the National Park seems to be unable to enforce existing bylaws, never mind any new proposals.

"This is a serious accident waiting to happen and it would appear that the National Park are either powerless to act or have insufficient resources to do so.

“I want to see decisive action by the council and National Park and I am hopeful that the Minister for National Parks will urgently meet with myself, the community and the local stakeholders to sort this problem out once and for all.”

Dave Pretswell, convener of Luss and Arden Community Council, said: “The trend of visitor footfall exceeding available infrastructure and management was evident even 10 years ago and has continued to accelerate ever since.

"The Covid-related staycation phenomenon has just pushed things over the edge and now any sunny summer day is a misery for the residents who actually live their lives in the village.

“Our community council and Luss Estates have been in almost continuous dialogue with the National Park and Argyll and Bute Council and while we've had sympathy and even recognition of the reality of the situation, absolutely nothing has yet changed to improve things on the ground for our residents.

"The situation continues to get worse and is now effectively uncontrolled and beyond the abilities, resources and maybe the will of these agencies to manage effectively.

“Budgets and lack of resources are the repetitive explanations offered for non-performance but represent no excuse.

"The National Park in its literature undertakes to 'support and nurture' its local communities  - but we've yet to see evidence of this in action. We need intervention from the Scottish Government - and urgently.”

In response, a spokesperson from the Scottish Government said: "We thank Jackie Baillie for her letter and the relevant Minister will respond in due course.

"We are clear that Scotland's valuable natural environment must be enjoyed responsibly. The National Parks in the Cairngorms and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs, play a key role in welcoming visitors, informing them of key messages around the climate and biodiversity twin crises and managing some of the impacts of high numbers of people, particularly at popular sites. Both Parks now have excellent Ranger Services to ensure a positive and safe experience for visitors, residents and nature in our parks.

"Our investment of £3.9 million to support rural tourism will help create more than 200 seasonal countryside rangers and operations staff posts. The rangers will help tackle issues such as littering, antisocial behaviour and public toileting in rural tourism hotspots through patrols, liaising with local communities, landowners and police.

"We are currently considering responses to our consultation on our National Litter and Flytipping Strategy. Our proposals include measures to strengthen enforcement, raising fixed penalties, improving data collection and supporting private landowners and local authorities."

And Argyle and Bute Council said: "We take actions to support responsible tourism and where appropriate, respond to situations as they arise."

Simon Jones, Director of Environment & Visitor Services at Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park Authority, said: "The National Park experienced exceptional volumes of visitors and traffic in all popular areas during the heatwave, including Luss, leading to pressures and in some cases irresponsible behaviour.

"Our Ranger and Land Operations teams focused a significant amount of their resources on Luss during this period between land patrols at the village and beach area, litter collections and boat patrols spending time in the Luss bay area. This had to be balanced with covering other popular areas that also experience pressure during periods of hot, sunny weather.

"We share the disappointment of local residents who have experienced these issues on their doorsteps and are continuing to work with the community and partners including Police Scotland to manage these issues at peak times.

"A public consultation will also shortly be launched to gather views on proposed changes to the existing Loch Lomond Byelaws in order to improve safety and further manage irresponsible behaviour on the Loch."