HUNDREDS of items including tents and camping equipment has been abandoned at Creamfields following the end of the Daresbury festival over bank holiday weekend.

Sleeping bags, mattresses, chairs and barbecues were also part of the rubbish left when campers departed from the fields.

Anna Lund, litter picker and plastic-free campaigner was appalled at the mess, but not surprised.

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“I wasn’t really surprised as in recent years there have been so many photos of the festivals because it happened after Reading, Leeds, Glastonbury and it has become more and more normal that people leave their tents behind which is shocking,” Anna, who moved to town from Hungary 14 years ago, said.

“I really don’t understand why people would pay the money and then decide that they don’t need it anymore and don’t take it home.

“The problem is the plastic and what is left behind cannot be recycled and some of the parts are not in a reusable condition. It all goes to landfills and they won’t break down for hundreds and hundreds of years, or if they break down they become microplastics."

Microplastics break down into tiny pieces and from the ground, they get into the water system and then get into the sea. They are consumed by fish and that impacts their digestive system and can cause death.

“There is a really bad effect on the environment.”

 

Another angle of the tents and rubbish abondoned at Creamfields

Another angle of the tents and rubbish abondoned at Creamfields

Anna, based in Great Sankey, is keen to find a solution and hopes it is acted on.

She continued: "If they have some sort of donation station at the end of the festival, people hopefully can donate it if they don’t want to take it home. You then rely on people that they are hopefully going to do the right thing."

Anna also proposed ideas like allocating numbers to campers and holding them responsible with a possible fine for leaving rubbish behind. Or, festival-goers pay an upfront deposit for tent space and they can get it back after the event if they leave their spot tidy.

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Alternatively, she also suggests that if the visitors have no intention of taking the tents away, they could put a donation towards the clean-up to help improve the aftermath of Creamfields.

Andy Carter MP posted on Facebook following the picture of the rubbish saying that he is grateful for the constructive feedback from residents in Stretton, Hatton and Walton.

He said: “I’ve agreed to hold a Creamfields debrief in the coming weeks with the organisers, Councillors, parish councils and residents - if you live nearby want to share your experience and thoughts please email me: Andy.Carter.mp@parliament.uk.”