Scottish SPCA members in Falkirk and beyond pledge support to Keep Scotland Beautiful

Keep Scotland Beautiful is asking people to pledge time to pick up litter over their campaign, which runs until 20 June and Scottish SPCA chief superintendent Mike Flynn knows just how important it is to keep the streets clear of litter.

He said: “We see first-hand the devastating consequences litter can have on animals. Seals and birds get caught up in fishing line or wire or animals can ingest small pieces of rubbish and choke or die.

“Picking up litter will help people respect their environment and protect animals from the dangers of litter. No matter how small, it has the potential to be hazardous or lethal to pets, wildlife and farm animals.

“The public should exercise caution and be careful when picking up litter and we ask children taking part be accompanied by a responsible adult. We recommend picking up litter with a dog bag or litter picker to avoid direct contact with any litter and do not pick up anything that could be harmful like glass or sharp objects.

"Any syringes found should not be picked up but reported to the local authority Emergency Waste Uplift informing them of the location of the syringe.

“One of the vets at our National Wildlife Rescue Centre and took some shocking pictures of litter and plastic that he has removed from animals.

"The sad thing is these injuries and deaths are entirely avoidable if people just disposed of their rubbish responsibly. We are proud to be making a difference by taking part in Paws on Plastic for the Keep Scotland Beautiful’s Summer Clean.”

Barry Fisher, CEO of Keep Scotland Beautiful, added: “We are delighted the Scottish SCPA has pledged to keep Scotland beautiful this month. We’ve warned of a looming litter emergency and our surveys show an increase in the number of sites surveyed being severely litter.

"With the support of thousands of people across Scotland who are pledging to do some litter picking as part of our Clean Up Scotland Summer Clean this month, we know that together we can make a difference.”