Now that the summer is well underway, more people are heading out to enjoy the green spaces that Milton Keynes has to offer.
And The Parks Trust, which cares for 6,000 acres of green space throughout the city, is encouraging everybody to "be kind to your local parks".
The independent charity currently spends £350,000 per year removing litter and has reminded people about the importance of cleaning up after themselves. "If you're out enjoying Milton Keynes' green space, please remember to take your litter home to help keep the parks wonderful places to be for both visitors and wildlife," The Parks Trust said on Twitter.
Litter tends to become more of an issue during the summer months, with greater numbers of people also ‘considerately littering’ by leaving their rubbish next to or on top of overflowing bins.
The Parks Trust has stated that this is still littering and emphasises that this seriously affects wildlife. Discarded rubbish blows around the parks and gets into the path of wildlife causing a whole host of issues. Animals may climb inside discarded bottles and become trapped or may become caught up in items like plastic multi-pack rings and plastic carrier bags, often with fatal results.
However, on a more positive note, residents throughout the city have been taking part in the #LoveMKHateLitter campaign which is "growing every day". Started by Kaizen Restaurants, which operates six McDonald's restaurants in MK, the campaign asks individuals to collect one bag of litter, share a picture on social media and nominate three others to do the same.
Ken Tomkins, from Kaizen, also took part in a 24-mile long litter pick last month and collected nearly 80 bags of rubbish whilst on his trip.
Littering in parks owned by The Parks Trust can result in fines ranging from £80 (for littering and dog fouling) to £400 (for dumping rubbish).
