Entire bean bag of polystyrene balls 'deliberately' dumped at Granton Beach as local takes on clean-up
There are fears that wind may have picked up the microplastics and blown them into the water
A local resident is conducting a shoreline clean-up after an enormous quantity of microplastics were “deliberately” dumped near Granton Beach.
Laura McVean, 34, stumbled upon the scene near West Shore Road on Thursday, April 23 and was left distressed by the mess left behind and the impact it could have on local wildlife.
Over the past week, Ms McVean and a friend have taken it upon themselves to clean up the area, filling up a number of bags with discarded rubbish in the process.
She said: “I just found lots of polystyrene balls, a huge amount, like out of one of the small seating areas that people make.”
Laura returned to the shoreline alongside her friend to try and clean up what they could.
She said: “I went back a couple of hours later with a friend to try and collect it so we took a lot of bags with us, not thinking that we would really need that many. But there was absolutely tons of it and it was quite difficult.
“We got a lot of it cleared up, but there was a lot of it that was stuck in the stones and the bricks. And obviously there's brambles and grass and sort of hedges and overgrown areas around there as well, so, like environmentally, it's just absolute chaos because it's quite difficult to get it all because it's so small as well.”
Laura explained that the polystyrene balls, which she said looked like came from a bean bag chair, had been spilled around six meters from the shore edge with additional rubbish such as food and drink packaging also found.
There were fears that a gust of wind could easily carry the microplastics into the nearby water.
Laura believes that the spill looked deliberate, saying: “I think even if you had a bean bag there and you had accidentally burst it, you wouldn't have had that much of the inside come out. It would have been easier to just take that with you. I think someone's emptied it on purpose and just left it there.”
She added: “I don't think it's ignorance, I think people are fully aware of what they're doing and the impact that it will have.”
Laura has plans to return more regularly to ensure that Granton Beach remains as litter-free as possible ahead of the summer months, and has encouraged other volunteers to join.
She said: “I'm definitely going to go there more regularly even if it's just to collect rubbish from the bottles and the tins.
“I think it's probably, especially coming up to summer, it's going to be more of an issue as well, so it's definitely somewhere that I'll go and check more regularly.”
A spokesperson for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) confirmed that it has contacted the local authority about the littering and issued thanks to Laura for her work in helping to clear the mess.
Barry Fisher, chief executive at environment charity Keep Scotland Beautiful, added: "Unfortunately we still have a serious issue of marine litter, which is polluting our environment and increasing the risk of danger to wildlife.
"We already know that 80% of marine litter comes from land, and our recent polling found 76% of people agreeing that litter makes public spaces unsafe for animals.
"Our Upstream Battle campaign focuses on changing littering behaviour to prevent marine litter at source and we're working to raise awareness of the issue and inspire positive action.
"I'd like to thank the two Granton residents who made the effort to clean up this unnecessary mess. Thank you for keeping Scotland beautiful."
Scottish Greens Edinburgh and Lothians East candidate and former party co-leader Lorna Slater described the incident as “both shocking and heartbreaking”.
She added: “These tiny polystyrene balls are exactly the kind of plastic pollution that can be impossible to fully clean up once it gets into the water.
“I want to thank the local resident and her friend for doing what they could to clean this up. It shows the real care for Granton’s shoreline the community has. But residents should never be left to deal with this kind of pollution themselves.
“The council and relevant environmental agencies must urgently investigate where this has come from, make sure the area is properly cleaned, and ensure that whoever is responsible is held to account.
“Granton’s shoreline should be a place for wildlife, families and the local community to enjoy, not a dumping ground for plastic waste. That is why the Scottish Greens have set out plans over this election campaign for stronger action to cut plastic pollution and make polluters pay, to best protect our beaches and waters, especially in Granton.”