Menace of messy seagulls stopped in Morecambe

A scheme to stop seagulls leaving a trail of rubbish in the street has been hailed a success.
A scheme to stop seagulls causing a mess has been hailed a successA scheme to stop seagulls causing a mess has been hailed a success
A scheme to stop seagulls causing a mess has been hailed a success

In August this year, more than 100 seagull-proof refuse storage sacks were issued to residential and commercial properties in the Poulton area of Morecambe which cannot accommodate the usual wheeled bins and still use a refuse bag collection service provided by the council. This included a number of businesses in the Queen Street area of the town who use the council’s trade waste service.Having received positive feedback from those who took part in the trial and that the durable woven sacks are easy to use, can easily hold up to three bin bags at a time and are helping to reduce litter in the area, the council will be rolling the initiative out in phases to other areas of Morecambe.The next area will be the West End and the council will be contacting all those residents who use the council’s orange bin bag collection service to arrange delivery.Morecambe BID, which part-funded the pilot scheme, will be paying for a further 300 sacks to be provided to businesses in the town.Businesses located in other areas of the district who might be experiencing similar problems with seagulls and other scavengers can order the special storage sacks from the council at a cost of £15 (inc VAT and delivery). Coun Brendan Hughes, Cabinet member for environmental services, said: “Like many other seaside towns and cities, residents and businesses often find the waste they have put out for collection falling victim to a seagull attack and ending up as litter on the street before refuse collectors can take it away.“Having received such positive feedback from the pilot scheme, I am confident that rolling out the sacks to other areas of Morecambe will play an important part in keeping the town clean and tidy and help to reduce the burden placed on our cleansing team in clearing up the additional mess created by hungry seagulls.”To order a bag you should contact the council’s Waste and Recycling Team tel. 01524 582481 or by email to [email protected]