Fast Food Outlet Feeds Growing Litter Problem

What an amazing sight now to see the all new businesses here in Wincanton. What with The Wagtail pub, Travelodge and of course the new fast food restaurant, Kentucky Fried Chicken.

The landscape on the other side of town, at the bottom of Old Hill, near the racecourse!

In my travels I along with my family have walked down to the Wagtail for a meal and could not believe the amount of rubbish strewn across the grass and other areas, not only in front of those businesses and by the pathway and cycleway at the new businesses, but also on our way past the skate park too.

Our first thoughts were, why do people do this? But then looking closer there are no bins! That in itself makes no sense. I mean, we ask people to be conscious of the environment and throw rubbish away properly yet they can't even do that as there is nowhere to put it.

What makes it worse is that KFC opened on the 10th September; so far only a month's worth of bags, cups and other bits has been strewn in various areas. We have to ask ourselves, what will that area look like in two or three months if we allow this to continue?

Who is responsible for clearing the rubbish in this area? Who should be putting bins out to actually collect this, instead of people literally dropping it as they walk?

Maybe the Town Council and KFC could get together and between them sort something out, before that regenerated area looks like Dimmer Dump!

The author has chosen to remain anonymous

[UPDATE:] Since the author sent in this article, we've heard that a member of KFC staff has been allocated to litter duty, at least for that general area. This will certainly help matters, but we've also heard reports of an increase in litter dropped at the opposite ends of town. Clearly KFC are not responsible for cleaning up litter throughout the entire town, nor can they be expected to provide ongoing litter clean-up beyond their own grounds. A long term solution must surely be provided by the town.

[EDITOR:] It should also be noted that the purpose of this article is not to lay blame for the increase in litter on KFC. Not only is this problem caused by their customers - members of the general public, litter from many other establishments can also be found throughout the town, including McDonald's, for whom the closest outlet is found just off the Sparkford roundabout!

Comments

Richard Joyce
Posts: 1

Fast Food Outlet
Reply #1 on : Mon October 22, 2012, 19:54:51

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I find this a very strange article – small amounts of rubbish are very annoying but quite easy to deal with.

The whole surroundings of the site from the A371 are a complete eyesore. It looks like an abandoned builder’s site which is what it is. The burned out old house, the banks of earth and clay, waist high weeds completely destroy the care that the firms have created in their individual buildings.

Is there no possibility of SSDC enforcing some sort of lever against whoever is responsible for this mess?

davidsmith
Posts: 1

Re: Fast Food Outlet Feeds Growing Litter Problem
Reply #2 on : Tue October 23, 2012, 16:00:22

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Two very interesting points. You're right, the current state of affairs isn't really too bad at the moment.

Unfortunately I didn't publish this article quite as quickly as I'd hoped because I wanted to go and take some photos to accompany it. Of course by the time I'd got down there, we'd heard that a member of KFC staff had been cleaning up a bit, so the immediate area didn't seem too bad.

I think it's important to acknowledge that while that area has been cleared up fairly well, will that continue for long and in the absence of bins?

More importantly, it should be acknowledged that this article isn't making an attempt to point the finger at KFC, but instead simply to point out the inevitable trend that occurs as a town grows. Litter will indeed increase as establishments like fast food outlets increase in number, along with the general population of the town.

It's inevitable - even natural, unfortunately, but it's worth highlighting the trend early so the town can take protective measures, such as adding more bins. As the article states, the litter isn't just near, or *from* KFC - it's being noticed all over town. That first photo is from the oposite side of town, and I've heard first-hand reports from the top of the High Street.

Right now, you're right - there's not too much rubbish around the KFC area, though at peak hours it's liable to increase. But is the current clean-up effort a half-measure?

I also acknowledge that these photos probably make the situation look far worse than it really is. It's quite difficult to avoid that, though.

Last Edit: October 23, 2012, 16:02:13 by davidsmith  

Victor Meldrew
Posts: 1

Re: Fast Food Outlet Feeds Growing Litter Problem
Reply #3 on : Tue October 23, 2012, 21:49:46

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Surely,m the responsibility lies with the developer9whom we all know) and SSDC(who should be enforcing). THe problem with SSDC is we are WINCANTON and NOT Yeovil, note that AGAIN SSDC have apparently removed litter bins from around Town, and show no intention of replacing them!. Perhaps the emptying of bins alone instead of sweeping the streets as well is too tiring for the TWO operators. I used to be a relief for SSDC and worked alonen nowadays I see them in pairs in vehicles and multiples in Yeovil.! It is time they were rreminded that it is a DISTRICT Council and not a Borough one! Please report ALL sightings of Flying Pigs to our District Councillors.

Last Edit: October 23, 2012, 21:50:54 by Victor Meldrew  

billie
Posts: 1

Rubbish
Reply #4 on : Wed October 24, 2012, 22:09:29

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Although this is anoying to some of the town it isn't the retailers issue totally, as they have provided bins and staff to clean the immediate area,but some or most the rubbish is distributed by the end user not the supplier.The responsibility is therefore that of the end user to dispose of the food containers responsibly and for SSDC to supply sufficient bins and the clearing or emptying around town.Do we hold Morrisons responsible for the carrier bag outside our doctors surgery yesterday?No we don't.

Nick Colbert
Posts: 1

Rubbish
Reply #5 on : Mon October 29, 2012, 11:18:42

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In the good ol@ US of A fines for littering are generally between $500 and $1,000, you wouldn't do it twice.

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