John Urquhart, chair of the Friends of Loch Lomond, criticised Argyll and Bute Council and the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park Authority over the mounting litter crisis in Luss, a historic conservation village on the banks of Loch Lomond. He accused them of turning a blind eye during the recent heatwave, which saw a surge of tourists and day-trippers.
Urquhart blames authorities for 'disgraceful state'
Mr Urquhart said: “Luss is once more in a disgraceful state due to inadequate management of litter. This happens every year, yet the two authorities responsible, Argyll and Bute Council and the National Park, still can’t get their act together.”
He warned that the council’s mantra of telling visitors to simply take their rubbish away is demonstrably failing. “It is not good enough for Argyll and Bute to fall back on their ‘Take your litter home’ mantra. Demonstrably it doesn’t work. What is needed are much better facilities and much better management, in terms of servicing them.”
Similarly, he said it is not acceptable for the National Park to claim keeping places like Luss clear is not their responsibility.
Charity offers 18 bins for immediate deployment
In an effort to clean up the village, Mr Urquhart has invited the two authorities to get in touch, revealing the charity has a stockpile of 18 high-quality litter bins in storage that could be deployed immediately.
The village has seen a massive surge in tourism thanks to its links to the TV drama Outlander, with showmakers using the town to film scenes for the upcoming prequel Outlander: Blood of my Blood. Even before the show, Luss was a popular spot for visitors, especially from Glasgow.
Council response: 'We share frustration'
An Argyll and Bute spokesperson said: “We work hard year-round to do all we can as a council to keep Loch Lomond beautiful and have scheduled litter picks on the roadside and laybys. We would urge everyone who visits Loch Lomond to love it, not litter it.
“Our sincere thanks go to the large number of volunteers across Argyll and Bute who do their bit to keep the area clean, and we support their efforts by providing bags and equipment. We share their frustration that people simply don’t take their litter home.”
However, they added: “We would love to do everything our communities want us to do, but sadly we are unable to meet the demands of servicing additional bins and the surplus waste they generate.”
National Park refutes claims, highlights efforts
A spokesperson for Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park said: “We completely refute statements made by Friends of Loch Lomond in relation to our responsibility. We put considerable resources into managing litter in Luss as well as many of our other busy sites in the National Park.
“We have never stated that Luss isn’t the responsibility of the National Park Authority and we work closely with Argyll and Bute Council to target our resources as effectively as we can. It’s disappointing to see these efforts dismissed in the statement.”
They noted that between 2023 and 2025 they have collected over 92,000kg of waste across the Park, and provide financial support to Argyll and Bute Council for additional waste provision in Luss. Their rangers carry out regular patrols to engage with visitors on responsible litter behaviour.
Regarding the offer of bins, the spokesperson said: “We note the offer of additional bins made by the Friends of Loch Lomond in their statement to the media, however – as Mr Urquhart will be aware – the cost of the bins themselves is relatively minor. There are significant additional costs involved in servicing more bins and managing the litter they attract. We will continue to work constructively with the charity, as we always have.”
