Our famous village is being turned into UK's ‘mini Glastonbury' where filthy tourists dump vapes & beer everywhere
The riverside beauty spot in Essex has been left blighted by litter-dropping tourists.
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The small village of Dedham has seen an increasing number of tourists visiting during the recent hot weather.
Deadham Vale nature reserve is a designated Area of Outstanding Beauty, famous for its water meadows and the River Stour.
The river has seen an increase in visitors partly because of the rise of stand up paddleboards and inflatable kayaks.
With a population of just 1,907, the village has been tarnished in recent weeks by tourists littering and engaging in "reckless behaviour".
Conservative councillor, Darius Laws, has said something must be done to curb overflowing bins and cars parking on green spaces.
The councillor posted a provocative video on social media on June 30 where he likened the scenes to last month's Glastonbury festival.
"You'd be forgiven for thinking that I'm in Glastonbury," Laws said in the video.
"No, f*** that, left-wing, so-called green, hippies. No, I'm in Dedham."
The campaign video was accompanied by the caption "you'd think there was a headline act performing" and calls on tourists to start "following the countryside code" and pick up litter.
In the video, councillor Thomas Rowe also adds: "Just remember, this isn't a festival, it's a village".
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Cllr Laws later said: "Hopefully, it gives people the confidence to tell people to pick up their litter and act appropriately.
"The amount of rubbish and reckless behaviour we are seeing is really concerning.
"It looked like a mini-Glastonbury. Bins were overflowing, people had dumped empty crates of beer, vape wrappers had been dropped on the ground.
"We see people jumping off the bridge into very shallow water and they could so easily break their necks.
"This is a beautiful part of the country, and it's not ok, it makes local wildlife sick and ruins nature.
"We do approach it in a friendly way because people may just be ignorant of the damage they're causing.
"The video was provocative to get people's attention and if people think twice then it's worked.
"We live in a beautiful village in a beautiful part of the world. We're welcome to visitors but they've got to be responsible."
Last year, the Environment Agency said the water could contain "levels of sewage, faeces from livestock and pollution from farming or industry"
Cllr Laws also believes the nearby sewage water treatment plant, plastic pollution and animal waste have contributed to the water becoming contaminated.
Colchester County Council said that they support the campaign and are calling on visitors to remove their waste.
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The Independent
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The Independent
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