Skeg-MESS: Calls for action after duckling dies in lake's litter

East Lindsey District Council says crime officers will be back on patrol this week issuing fines for littering - but for residents this action can't come too soon.

Since the Covod-19 lockdown was eased and thousands of visitors flocked to the coast, there have been several reports of items such as beer bottles, barbecues and even nappies discarded on the beach and in public areas with, seemingly, no effort at all by those responsible to find a bin.

But the most distressing image of all was one of the dead ducklings, which was taken by local photographer John Byford during his morning walk.

He posted on social media that he was horrified by what he saw.

"My morning walk took me around the Marine Lake. What I saw horrified me," he said.

"Dead ducklings (stuck in amongst the rubbish) dead fish, pollution and litter - and all in what should be one of the the key UK holiday destinations."

In the past week, Nigel Spence has also posted an image of the boating lake, where he found a dead deer.

"Once again we enjoyed our walk," he said. "However, as we walked at the rear of KFC, Skegness side of the bridge, we came across loads of KFC rubbish in the boat canal. The most distressing thing was a drowned deer. Someone has kindly rescued it,but unfortunately,the deer is dead,.

"I will be passing this information on to the local council. KFC need to take responsibility for all that rubbish - come on, people, put your rubbish in the bins provided, please."

The state of the beach after the influx of visitors was also flagged up by RNLI Lifeguards East of England, who were 'disappointed' by what they saw.

A post on social media said: "If you’re making the most of this weather at the beach... please take your litter with you!

"There are plenty of bins to choose from!"

Arun Gray, Lifeguard Supervisor for east Lindsey, said: "Litter is not something we typically get involved with. There are usually council workers that deal with the litter throughout the summer and a tractor which used to rake the sand daily,

"We do however deal with it indirectly in the event of injuries caused by the litter – such as BBQ burns or cuts from broken glass etc. These are more common during busy periods where the beach population increases, leading to an increase in litter."

Residents agreed that rubbish was becoming a serious problem along the coast.

Carol Bingham said it has been worse since the Covid-19 restrictions were eased. She said: "I walked that way the other day. Bins were overflowing, so many are using them and putting rubbish at the side, which blowing about.

"They need to put on extra rubbish collections."

Zandra Christie said: "I don’t understand why this is such a problem in this day and age. It seems to be a worldwide thing - some humans are just utterly vile.

"Something needs to be done at government level - and education on why this matters needs to start at nursery schools.

"Get the kids litter picking - get the kids into nature. I don’t know, I find it very sad and very frustrating!

"I want my son to have countryside and wildlife in the future."

East Lindsey District Council said litter has been an issue across the country recently in open spaces - and the message to people who .cannot find a bin is 'take your litter home'.

"Unfortunately, it’s unwarranted behaviour," said a spokesman. "Since the easing of the lock down travel restrictions, more and more people have been visiting outdoor spaces including the coastal resorts and unfortunately we have seen an increase in litter being left.

"The waste bins continue to be emptied to schedule, but at times there may be disruption to the service, as there are greater operational challenges resultant of CV-19. The message is for people to take their litter home if they are unable to find a bin.

"The Environmental Crime Officers are back out patrolling from this week, but are on reduced patrols to reduce contact with people and lessen any risk. A beach patrol for the Public Space Protection Order takes place weekly, and inspecting daily any reported hotspots for dog fouling and litter. A

"Any fixed penalties that are to be issued will be sent in the post as opposed to being issued on the spot for now, to again reduce contact. All patrols will gradually increase over the next few weeks."

Phil Gaskell, of Skegness & District Coastal Access For All, added they are unable to hold public beach clean-ups this year as the Marine Conservation Society is unable to provide Public Liability insurance due to COVID. Normallly they have more than 40 volunteers supporting regular beach cleans throughout the season.