A PILOT waste initiative which saw bins placed on Aberystwyth’s busiest beach on Bank Holiday Monday has been labelled a “resounding success”.

The problem of litter on the town’s beaches, in particular Aberystwyth North Beach during spells of hot weather, has been a constant thorn in the side of local volunteer beach cleaning groups, Aberystwyth Beach Buddies and Surfers Against Sewage.

In conjunction with Ceredigion County Council, which loaned the volunteers six 240-litre wheelie bins, ABB and SAS volunteers placed the bins in known litter hot spots between 11am and 5pm.

The bins were decorated with “Love Aber” posters and volunteers also spoke with members of the public to raise awareness, and up to 40 people joined in with beach cleans throughout the day.

Alan Cookson, Borth representative for Surfers Against Sewage, told the Cambrian News that the bins had been left half full.

He said: “We’ve had a great day and a fantastic beach clean very well supported by the local community and Bank Holiday visitors.

“We’ve worked closely with Ceredigion County Council who have supported us by providing six wheelie bins to use for the day. The day was a resounding success.

“Every bin we put out was decorated with positive messages about keeping Aberystwyth and our beautiful coastline clean. Our number one comment from volunteers who walked the beach was ‘we didn’t find much’.

“We think that extra visual presence of bins on the beach not only showed how much the local community takes great pride in and great care of our local environment, but also makes those willing to litter much less likely to do so.

“It is the people of Aberystwyth that are the custodians of our coastline and when people see that in action, they are much more inclined to follow that example.

“We had about 40 people volunteer throughout the day and local councillor Alun Williams attended twice. The response during the clean and the support on social media has been fantastic.”

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