Bank warned about leaving rubbish out in Conwy

Jun 24 2010 by Richard Evans, North Wales Weekly News

A BANK has been warned not to leave rubbish on the street after seagulls repeatedly ripped open bin bags leaving Conwy’s High Street a embarrassing mess.

Barclays Bank has now been warned by Conwy County Council not to leave their bin bags out on the street where it’s being pillaged by opportunistic gulls.

Last week Conwy councillor Toby Tobin resorted to picking up the mess himself when birds tore into bins left out on Tuesday evening.

The bank is closed Wednesday, the same day its rubbish is collected by a contractor so staff have been leaving bin bags on the pavement outside the bank on Tuesday evenings.

So bad was the resulting food, paper and rubbish scattered on Conwy’s main street, Cllr Tobin said he was embarrassed by the mess which ruined the look of a World Heritage Site during the tourist season.

“It has happened numerous times. Most of the blame can be put on the gulls,” said Cllr Tobin.

A spokeswoman for Conwy County Council warned the bank if it happened again it would consider action.

“Our trade waste officer visited Barclays in Conwy last week, following concerns raised by Cllr Tony Tobin,” she said.

“The branch has a trade waste contract with a private company that collect on Wednesdays.

“We have asked them not to put their bags out until the day of collection, as required of all our own customers. If they continue to cause litter, we would consider enforcement action.”

A spokesman for Barclays commented: “This is the first time we have been made aware of any issue with regard to refuse collection and nuisance seagulls.

“We have already taken action to ensure this does not occur again and are currently discussing alternative arrangements with our refuse contractor. As active members of the local community we are grateful that this has been brought to our attention so that we can resolve the issue quickly and to the satisfaction of our customers, local residents and fellow traders.”