A RESIDENT from near Malpas has called for action to be taken against the manufacture and disposal of plastic products following an ‘environmental disaster’ on a rural road.

David Powell, from Duckington, says he recently discovered large quantities of fine, plastic-like material covering hedges and undergrowth along Old Coach Road.

David says his main concerns are over where the material has originated from, with it appearing following heavy rains in the area.

“This is not an isolated case,” said Mr Powell.

“During the storms and heavy rain recently a vast quantity of surfacing material was washed into the area, covering verges and the bottoms of hedges, and presumably pouring into drains.

“I didn’t think too much of this, thinking it would be natural fibre of some sort.

“But when I took a closer look, to my absolute horror, I realised it was made up of plastic fibre and rubber.

“Within it are shredded synthetic carpets, carpet tiles, fabrics, electric cable insulation, inner tubes and car door seals. Probably 90 per cent polypropylene.”

David is also worried about the negative consequences such a product could have on the local ecosystem.

“How is such a product even legal,” he added.

“Even without the heavy rains, this product will be leaching into the ground, being ingested by worms, birds and insects, and possibly other small mammals, but will also be entering the rivers and waterways.”

He said: “This product must be banned and the users and manufacturers of this product need to be held accountable, and any land contaminated by it needs to be cleaned up.”

After contacting the Environment Agency, a spokesman said the incident had not been reported, although they have urged local residents with any issues to get in touch.

“Unfortunately this has not been reported to us directly and as such is not on our systems,” they said. “We have had no reports in the area in the past year.

“Members of the public can report issues like this to us on our incident hotline (0800 80 70 60) which will allow us to investigate their concerns further.”