Specialist litter pickers brought in to clean up cliffs grazed by goats
Specialist litter pickers are to be called in to clean cliffs which are home to 50 goats.
The herd was introduced to the seven mile (11km) stretch of cliffs in Bournemouth in 2009 to manage vegetation. But now specially trained outdoor cleaners need to be deployed after piles of plastic and discarded rubbish were discovered in the goat enclosure.
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council (BCP) said it was aware of littering and professional hill cleaners were required to deal with the steepest areas.
The cliff sides are typically a 45-degree gradient and about 35 metres high.
Mark Jackson, who owns the goats, said although the tipping had not yet caused harm to his herd, the litter needed to be cleared.
He told BBC: “Sadly, it’s not a case of a quick litter pick, this particular enclosure is very steep and requires a specialist clearance team with the appropriate safety equipment.”
A West Cliff visitor spoke of the “dreadful” conditions the goats are currently enduring.
Martin Ledger, 80, told the Bournemouth Echo: “People get out of their cars, they walk on here, they have a kebab, or a Big Mac and they just chuck boxes over the cliff because they see other rubbish in there.
He added: “It’s surprising they’re not ill because goats are sort of always looking for something to eat, and they’ll eat anything. This isn’t the right way to treat livestock.”
Litter Free Dorset (LFD) said it wants to put an end to the mess in order to protect the animals.
Emma Teasdale, a project officer, said: “For any animal to be ingesting plastic, I imagine that’s going to be pretty harmful, especially soft plastic. Plastic will stay in the environment forever.”
LFD is trying to stop the problem at the source by working with firms to reduce the amount of plastic entering the environment.
Ms Teasdale added: “We specifically work with businesses and we’re really trying to work closely with kind of hospitality and food and takeaway businesses in particular to try and reduce the amount of food and drink packaging that’s ending up in the environment by actually reducing the amount of packaging they’re using in the first place.”
Cllr Kieron Wilson, BCP council portfolio holder for housing and regulatory services, said: “Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council is determined to tackle littering across our beautiful area.
“We are aware of litter within some of the goat areas on the cliff face and our staff are undertaking litter picking where it is safe to do so. On the steeper areas of the cliff, we will be using a specialist contractor to litter pick.”
The council is working with Waste Investigations Support and Enforcement to investigate the problem and is issuing fines to anyone found littering.
