On Thursday 29th August we carried out a litter pick along an inland stretch of the Ayrshire Coastal Path/National Cycle Network at Kilwinning (Byrehill Rd). On the Irvine to Ardrossan section of the Trail, sadly this single track road is a known problem-area for littering and fly tipping. By the end of the 2 hour pick we had collected 15 bin bags of rubbish and a variety of larger items including a paddling pool and a whirligig! We were also able to report several instances of fly tipping, one of which being a boat! North Ayrshire Council’s ‘Report It’ app proved very useful and we highly recommend giving it a try if you don’t already use it!
The litter pick was organised as part of Eco Ayrshire 2019 – a month-long festival celebrating what local organisations across the area are doing to ‘Take Steps today to Sustain Tomorrow’..
Volunteers from the Scottish Wildlife Trust Ayrshire‘s ‘Time out Thursday’ initiative came along to help, as did Ian ‘The Nation’s Favourite Litter Picker’ Cassidy – all of whom were a huge help in the clean up!
Within a few hours, Streetscene (North Ayrshire Council) had been along and removed all the collected rubbish, leaving a lovely tidy road behind for visitors and locals alike to enjoy.
This litter pick was made possible due to funding which the Ayrshire Coastal Path received from Sustrans Scotland. The Love Your Network Grant Fund enabled us to purchase litter pickers, bag hoops, hi viz vests and a range of hand tools. We are very grateful to Sustrans Scotland for the support and funds received!
Photos courtesy of John Linton of Sustrans Scotland
