Simon Mason <
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A driver has been ordered to pay a fine of £440, costs of £886 and a
victim surcharge of £176 for disposing of litter onto a road from his car window.
'Selfish cyclists' slammed for dropping empty gel packs in Richmond park, risking the lives of deer
IN DISTRESS: A DEER WITH A STRING OF LITTER CAUGHT AROUND ITS NECK.
FRANCESCA GILLETT
“Selfish cyclists” in Richmond Park have been blamed for dropping litter which can kill deer by clogging their stomachs.
A new warning from park conservationists has slammed the “dangerous” new phenomenon of cyclists discarding gel packs during recent races held at the park.
Litter is one of the major threats facing grazing deer in the park, with an estimated five deer killed by eating discarded rubbish each year, wildlife officers at the park say.
The warning comes after two major cycling events, the London Duathlon and
Ride London, saw hundreds of gel packs left lying at the nature reserve.
GRUESOME: WILDLIFE OFFICER JOHN BARTRAM HOLDING UP THE STOMACH CONTENTS OF
A DEER WHICH DIED BECAUSE OF LITTER.
Richard Gray, trustee of the Friends of Richmond Park, told the Standard: “It’s a real health issue. What we have identified with these two particular races is this phenomenon of the gel packs.
“Lots of our members are cyclists, I’m a cyclist, but you get a number of slightly more selfish cyclists who aren’t getting rid of it responsibly.
“They are doing the Tour de France thing, seeing people tear off their gel packs and spitting them out.
“But unlike other races, it doesn’t get picked up. It’s a new phenomenon, particularly because so many more people are taking up competitive
endurance cycling and use gel packs.”
'DANGEROUS': LITTER IS ONE OF THE BIGGEST THREATS FACING DEER IN THE PARK, CONSERVATIONISTS SAY.
A photo released shows one of the park’s wildlife officers holding up the gruesome stomach contents of two deer which died from eating rubbish.
Recent post-mortems of deer have shown their stomachs “full of litter”.
The London Duathlon, on Sunday, saw litter from more than 160 empty gel
packs left behind on just a 600 metre section while Ride London, on July
31, saw over 180 discarded in the same area.
Litter eaten by deer clogs their digestive systems, meaning they are unable
to eat properly and starve.
WARNING: THE PARK'S CONSERVATION GROUP HAVE ISSUED A WARNING TO CYCLISTS.
“Everybody loves the deer,” Mr Gray said. “But it’s a nature reserve and
people tend to forget that.
“It’s not your local race track. It’s a site of special scientific interest.”
DISCARDED: SOME OF THE GEL PACKS LEFT BEHIND BY CYCLISTS DURING THE
DUATHLON 2016 RACE AT THE WEEKEND.
The biggest threat to the park’s famous deer was historically cars, but
over the years speed limits and the number of accidents have been brought
down. Mr Gray said this is a sign “things can improve” and there is hope cyclists will change their behaviour.
The group’s chairman Ron Crompton said: “Following a similar survey after this year's event, the organisers of Ride London are committing to much
greater prevention measures to ensure offending competitors are spotted littering and either disqualified or banned from participating.
“We do hope that the Duathlon organisers will adopt a similar approach and ensure that all competitors are clear that this sort of behaviour is unacceptable.
“Finding this large extent of litter 24 hours after the event is very worrying for the Park's wildlife and particularly the deer.”
<
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/london/selfish-cyclists-slammed-for-dropping-litter-after-richmond-park-deer-deaths-a3350046.html>
On 31st January 2023, a member of the public witnessed waste being thrown from the passenger window of a black ford focus on Carlton Road, Worksop.
A DVLA search of the car’s licence plate showed it belonged to Luke
Banton of Broom Avenue, Rotherham.
Mr Banton was twice invited to undertake a written interview under
caution. He failed to respond on either occasion.
He was then invited to attend an interview under caution at Bassetlaw District Council offices on 16th March 2023, which he also failed to attend.
As the registered owner of the vehicle, Mr Banton was issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice which gave him 28 days to pay £100. When no payment was received the case was then taken to court.
Mr Banton was invited to and failed to attend Mansfield Magistrates Court
on 27th July 2023. The case was proven in his absence and he was ordered
to pay a fine and costs within 28 days.
Cllr Darrel Pulk, Cabinet member for Environment and Energy said:
“This case is a great example of how the public can work with us to help catch those littering in our district.
“Throwing litter from a vehicle can be dangerous for other vehicles, our wildlife and shows a total lack of respect for our residents and local community.
“I can think of far better things to spend £1500 on. So please, take your litter home with you and put it in a bin, otherwise it could be very costly.”
Bassetlaw District Council’s current ‘Don’t be a Tos53r campaign’ is focusing on the issue of drivers and passengers throwing rubbish from
their vehicles. When reporting litter being thrown from a vehicle please provide as much information as possible including the registration plate,
the make and model of the car, location of the offence and any
description of the person committing the offence.
You can report littering from a car via our website.
https://www.bassetlaw.gov.uk/media-centre/news/news-archive/august-2023/driver-fined-over-1500-for-littering-from-his-car/
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