The amount of litter discarded by the British public has increased dramatically since 2009, says a recent environmental initiative. Findings from the Marine Conservation Society's 2010 Beachwatch report suggest that reports of public littering have risen by as much as 6% since the previous year.

          Following this year's Isle of Wight festival, which saw an increase in attendance of around 20,000 people, the site was left blanketed with food, equipment and even tents. Hope Elletson, MD of PictureFrames.co.uk and a participant in the British Heart Foundation's Isle of Wight Ride, decries the lack of responsibility displayed by festival-goes in his latest blog post. “The striking thing was the flagrant waste and the sense of disposability obviously taken as an acceptable norm… As a boy scout and then soldier I was taught [to] “take nothing but memories and leave nothing but thanks”.

        And the problem isn't confined to the Isle of Wight. The Welsh Local Government Association's 'Week In, Week Out' programme estimated the total cost of clearing litter from Wales' streets and countryside to be more than £40m every year. Scotland's beaches are estimated to be the most densely polluted in the UK. In February, environmentalist blog EcoStreet released a video 'showing both pieces of plastic and zoo-plankton. You’d be hard pressed to tell the difference. Fish and other marine organisms often can’t.'

         Wounded serviceman Mark Newton, who raised over £8,000 for the Help For Heroes campaign this summer by touring the Welsh coast on a mobility scooter, also voiced his disapproval. "I really have seen some wonderful views and some cracking wildlife... The only thing that got to me was the rubbish we as people dump and fly-tip."

         Regarding a solution to this wasteful behaviour, Hope's article concludes: “I thought the festival going crowd were supposed to be amongst the right thinking members of our society with a belief in sustainability and all things green – but if they can’t be trusted to behave in responsible manner, then what about the organisers and the local Council... [It's time to] start educating people and demanding higher standards.”