Scottish beaches 'dirtiest' in UK

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Scotland's beaches remain the dirtiest in Britain, according to the Marine Conservation Society (MCS).

The annual Beachwatch survey recorded more than 55,000 litter items on 52 Scottish beaches.

The amount of litter was down 5% on last year but still above average. Sewage-related debris was three times the UK level.

Two badly rubbish-strewn beaches, East Bay in Helensburgh and Clynder in Argyll, raised the Scottish average.

The survey, carried out by volunteers in September, found litter levels on UK beaches at a record high, having doubled since the clean-ups began in 1994.

In Scotland more than 13 miles of beaches were cleared of rubbish.

On average, 2,581.4 items of litter/km were found, significantly higher than the UK average (2,195/km) but a 5.37% decrease on 2007.

SOURCES OF BEACH LITTER Public 966.8/km (UK 827.3/km ) Sewage 509.1/km (UK 135.9/km) Fishing 203.2/km (UK 302.8/km)Shipping 40.5 (UK 39.1/km)Fly-tipped 37.0/km (UK 20.5/km) Medical 6.1/km (UK 4.0/km)

When figures for the badly-contaminated East Bay and Clynder were removed, the Scottish average fell to 2,219.6/km.

The density of sewage-related debris such as cotton buds was 509.1/km in Scotland compared to the UK average of 135.9/km, again driven upwards by high figures for East Bay and Clynder.

Anne Saunders, MCS Scottish project officer, said: "We are calling for all countries in the UK to take action, to designate a lead body in each country to do something about this problem and work out a strategy.

"The problem in the Helensburgh area is long-standing, but through the data we have collected we have been able to demonstrate there is a problem with the sewerage.

"Scottish Water has now earmarked millions of pounds to upgrade treatment infrastructure as a result of this information. That is a great success of the Beachwatch campaign in Scotland."

Levels of fishing litter were better than in England and Wales, but litter from shipping was the highest density in Scotland.

Various plastic items were the most common objects found in the survey.

There was a drop in the number of balloons and cigarette stubs removed by the volunteers.