Hundreds of bags of rubbish and 1.5 tonnes of fly-tipping found at Fife beauty spot

Happy Beaches – Fife filled 328 bags full of rubbish and found more than 1.5 tonnes worth of fly-tipped items during a few litter picks at the woodland site near Montgomery Drive in Leven.

Three sofas, headboards, ironing boards, tyres, garden swings, TV units, computers and carpets were just some of the discarded items left in the area.

A team of Fifers spent around 55 hours clearing out the space – but not a single volunteer from Mountfleurie, or the area, came forward to help with the effort.

“Unfortunately, no one turned up from the area,” said Mike Delaney, who founded the group and was among those clearing the site.

“The ones who did turn up were the regulars. It was such a disappointment that no one takes pride in what they have.

“People should take pride in where they live. It’s a lovely bit of woodland. You have a big grass area but there is always fly-tipping going on. There is so much wildlife there, but it is treated like a dump.”

Mike set up the group a few years ago after his dog injured its paw on a can while walking on the beach.

He returned the next day with a bag to fill with rubbish. The hobby has grown from there, and now others from around Fife join in.

“We do volunteer and community litter picks,” Mike said.

“We want to get into primary schools and teach the kids about the litter and the damage it does to the environment.”

Members of Happy Beaches – Fife can suggest spots around the Kingdom in need of a litter pick.

With Montgomery Drive, Mike was walking his dog in the area when he noticed the amount of discarded waste. He started collecting, and it has snowballed from there.

Despite no locals turning up for the Leven litter pick, Mike does have reason for optimism in the future.

When a group of teenage boys recently noticed Mike and his wife clearing up an area, they asked to take part.

“It was so nice to see those boys wanting to help,” Mike said.

“It was encouraging to see how they interacted. It’s just a shame people in Mountfleurie didn’t come along and try to make it look nicer.”

If you would like to take part in a litter pick in the future, visit – www.facebook.com/happybeaches.co.uk.