NEIGHBOURS in Lower Darwen facing wintry conditions on the road yesterday were shocked to find their grit bin was filled ... with rubbish and bags of dog waste.

After the overnight snow, Bernard Walsh teamed up with some neighbours on Begonia View, Lower Darwen, to try to clear their road.

He said: “It is not good when you are trying to use a grit bin and then you find it filled with dog poo bags.

“What’s wrong with taking it home and putting it in the bin? Some people just don’t care: if it’s out of sight it’s nothing to do with them anymore.

“It seems pretty pathetic that we are in winter and having to scrape out year-old grit to get people to work, on top of having to empty other people’s dog bags out of grit bins.”

Joanne Southern labelled it as ‘disgusting and lazy’. She said: “There are bins on the main road for dog-walkers to put their pets’ waste in.

“My husband had to take a day off work because he could not get off the road and I don’t know why there was no grit in there, just rubbish. It is worrying if the council do not put any grit in there and the weather gets worse.”

Neighbour James Breakell said: “When the winter is over the bin is always empty and the problem is that people just put anything in it.

“I don’t know why the council don’t come to pick them up and bring them back ready for the next winter.

“If the council see waste in there they are not going to put grit in it.”

Cllr Denise Gee, who represents the Blackburn South and Lower Darwen ward, said: “People throw dog waste everywhere apart from where it should be.

“It is a huge problem across the borough. It is terrible those grit bins are not being used for the purpose of keeping our roads clear for the people who need them.

“If you use locks on them, then they won’t meet that purpose.”

Cllr John Slater, who also represents the ward, said: “As councillors, we go around all of the grit bins to see if they have been filled.

“However, it is a new ward for us and we are sorry there was no grit in them.

“But I will be speaking to the environment team at the council to see whether they have been missed off the drop for grit or if they are not on a gritting route.”

Cllr Phil Riley, who deals with grit bins on Blackburn with Darwen Council, said: “We provide the grit bins to assist the residents.

“We are aware that on occasion these are abused by people turning up and filling their car boots and emptying the bins.

“It is anti-social behaviour and it is not what the bins are there for.

“This case is an extreme example but we have a programme of replenishment for the grit bins so that people can keep the streets and roads clear.”

.