A CLEAN-UP of the worst marine litter from the shoreline in Garelochhead has been postponed – after Argyll and Bute Council said it couldn’t provide a skip to accommodate the debris.

Members of Garelochhead Community Council had been planning to tackle the problem by hiring in a digger to remove the heaviest and most bulky material from the shore last week.

But a few days before the operation, local councillor and Garelochhead resident George Freeman got in touch to say he’d been told by a council official that, contrary to previous information, the authority no longer provided skips for such clean-ups.

That ran contrary to a pledge he had made at the community council’s October meeting that a skip would be provided.

Cllr Freeman said the authority would provide bags, gloves and litter pickers and a lorry to collect all bagged-up materials afterwards.

But Watson Robinson, the community council’s convener, said the worst litter – including an abandoned boat which has lain on the shore for many months – was too large or heavy to be put in bags.

Mr Robinson said: “It’s a great shame that there appears to be little haste to address the ever growing problem.

“Garelochhead and Arrochar have been working hard to try and find a solution for this problem some time now, but we simply can’t do it on our own. We were paying for a contractor to clear the beach, the council were to collect and take to landfill. A fair deal I would have thought.

“It’s great that some parties are prepared to turn up with bin bags and gloves and their staff will get out there and work along side local people but the reality is, it’s just not enough, and unfair on the local people to carry the burden.

“We’re hoping to go ahead again in the spring.”

Cllr Freeman said: “I am far from happy with this decision. It was pointed out to me that there has been abuse of the skips that were provided in some areas in the past. This has even resulted in the skips being overloaded.

“I am far from happy at this change as I now feel that I have unknowingly misled the community council.

“It appears that this change is down to the budget cuts made by the council in February and the need to save every penny.”

A council spokesperson told the Advertiser: “Drastically reduced funding means that we can’t do all that we would like to do for our communities.

“We will do all that we as a local authority can do to work with anyone who is as eager as we are to tackle the national problem of marine litter. Where possible we collect litter from community beach cleans. However, this comes as a cost to the council in terms of vehicles, manpower and top-end landfill taxes. Unfortunately, our resources do not allow us to support this beach clean with waste removal.

“We will be happy to work with the group to help them secure external funding to support their initiative.”