Editor,

As a huge Aberystwyth fan, I have a matter of the heart to write you this letter about. Aberystwyth is my absolute favourite town and after having to miss out on a trip there for three years due to Covid, I was overjoyed to be able to stay in my beloved Aber for four months this summer. Even though the time was wonderful overall and I enjoyed my stay very much, I was very saddened by the state the town was in.

Sadly, I can’t remember ever having been in such a dirty and littered place before.

The filthy entrances of empty shops, especially in Great Darkgate Street, rubbish in corners and on pavements and streets, overflowing rubbish bins, stench in Pier Street among others, dog poo on pavements, front gardens mistaken by residents for rubbish dumps — what a sad and off-putting picture of what should be a beautiful town. I wonder why this problem is not being tackled comprehensively and competently. What works elsewhere must surely also be possible in Aber. I have spoken to many people, tourists and residents alike, who are all disgusted by the situation.

If something doesn’t change soon, I see big problems ahead for the town: I can well imagine that tourists will eventually feel repelled and prefer to go somewhere else in the future. If that happens, the town will be in a vicious circle; less income will come in, so less can be invested, the situation will get worse, even fewer tourists will come, etc. The end would be a sad existence as a run-down seaside resort that is past its prime.

The rubbish creates at least two other problems in my opinion — it attracts rats and seagulls and it contributes significantly to the pollution of our seas.

The people in charge seem to accept all this knowingly, and I absolutely cannot understand it. How can they be so indifferent? They have a beautiful place with so much potential and they let it rot like this? Unbelievable! I see the effort that the waste collectors and the voluntary litter pickers make. But these individual measures will not solve the overall problem, as we now know.

The people in Wales have always seemed to me to be very responsible and motivated, committed to good projects with a lot of energy and conviction. I appeal to everyone involved with Aberystwyth - the administration, residents, business owners, shopkeepers and homeowners to get together and start a concerted effort. With the motto: “Let’s get our town clean”. There is a whole range of measures that can be taken and I think benchmarking is also possible in this context. Look at how other tourist places do it.

If this is done properly, you will not only be able to solve concrete litter problems, you can also use the action for marketing purposes for tourism. The town has to ask itself what kind of tourism it wants: cheap tourism with a lot of noise, rubbish and antisocial behaviour or maybe a little more sustainable tourism with people who are more aware of their environment and their fellow human beings.

Join forces and make Aberystwyth again what it actually is: a gem on the Irish Sea.

I will be in Aber every year for a longer period of time in the future and will be happy to support if requested.

Katrin Scholz,

Germany