COPELAND Council has employed extra help to ensure its beaches stay pristine this summer.
The council takes on two seasonal beach cleaners every year from May until the end of September, to help deal with the extra litter created at the four amenity beaches and the nearby villages.
Gary Fletcher and John Harris pick up litter, empty bins and keep an eye on the recycling areas at St Bees Beach, Seascale, Haverigg and Silecroft beaches. Both men have experience in the role, having taken up the seasonal positions in previous years.
Their rotas include weekends so that the beaches are kept attractive even when there are lots of visitors.
Community Services Manager Janice Carrol said: “Last year our staff collected almost 20 tonnes of rubbish from Copeland’s amenity beaches, and supported around 20 community beach cleans.
“We’d like to stress though that although we provide additional cleaning during the summer, we still need people to be responsible.
“We’d ask everyone to use the bins provided to make sure their litter doesn’t end up in the sea where it can cause harm to marine life. If the bin is full, please try to find another or take the waste home – when it is just left beside bins it can be blown around or disturbed by animals and birds before our cleaners get to it.”
