Shoppers welcome action over nuisance seagulls in city centre

RESIDENTS in Swansea have welcomed action by the council and local businesses to help reduce the number of seagulls in the city centre.

Swansea Council launched a litter campaign recently to discourage shoppers in the city centre from feeding nuisance seagulls and pigeons.

The move follows complaints from local businesses and shoppers about large numbers of the hefty birds that are circling shoppers and feeding on scraps of food thrown on the ground.

Large posters have been put on bins throughout the city centre asking the public to ‘feed the bins and not the birds’.

Litter enforcement officers will also hand out £75 fixed penalties to anyone caught throwing food on the ground.

Emily Pickard, from Dunvant, said: “My friend had some food taken from her hand by a seagull and the bird cut her hand in the process. I think it’s a good idea to try and keep them from the city centre where people are eating.”

Chris Parsons, a city centre street trader, said: “I sell food in the city centre and I often ask customers to try not to throw food on the ground for the birds. They are a nuisance.

“They didn’t come near us when I was a kid but they’re not scared of us anymore and will happily dive-bomb people for whatever food they have in their hand. As long as people continue feeding them there’s no need for them to go anywhere else.”

Cllr Mark Thomas, Swansea Council’s Cabinet Member for Environment and Transportation, said: “Our aim is to tackle the litter problems in the city centre and this includes throwing food on the ground.

“We’ve had some success with our litter enforcement team in encouraging shoppers to use bins that are provided.

“We know that the birds in the city centre are attracted to food so we want shoppers to do the right thing and dispose of their unwanted food properly.

“Hopefully this can help reduce the numbers of birds in the city centre that are creating a nuisance.”