A SHARP increase in face mask litter across Scotland has sparked renewed pleas for people to be more responsible.

Local authorities, beach cleaning volunteers and environmental organisations told the Sunday National the problem is growing worse.

In recent months used ­disposable masks have been increasingly found contaminating local ­authority ­recycling collections as well as ­littering the countryside, according to officials.

With currently no set date for ­face masks to stop being mandatory in Scotland, concern is growing about the amount of plastic pollution being caused by the items and the risk to wildlife.

Joy Melville of Friends of Troon Beaches in Ayrshire said: “People are leaving them on the beach and they are washing in on the tide too. ­Everyone cleaning the beach finds them every time they clean up litter.”

In Edinburgh, environment vice-convener Karen Doran said the city council was aware face masks were being “irresponsibly and illegally ­discarded”.

“We’d advise that where people are unable to wear a reusable mask, please make sure you put it in the nearest bin after you’ve used it,”

she said.

Highland Council also said there has also been an increase in face mask litter.

“This is especially so around bus stops, car parks and shopping areas,” said a Highland Council spokesperson.

Friends of the Earth Scotland ­director Dr Richard Dixon said he was concerned the issue could ­reverse the progress the country had made in the fight against single use plastics.

The National:

“The increase in plastic ­pollution from single use masks is a clear ­environmental concern as they end up in beaches, waterways and hedgerows, in addition to being unhygienic for these products to be carelessly ­discarded as litter,” he said.

“Even if single use masks are ­disposed of properly, they will spend hundreds of years in landfill sites across Scotland before they even ­begin to break down.

“Over the past few years, we’ve made some real steps forward in the fight against single use plastics. ­Reusable water bottles have become the norm, plastic stemmed cotton buds are banned, and supermarkets have moved away from single use plastic bags.”

DIXON added: “We must make sure that as our society comes out of this pandemic, we do not reverse the positive long-term gains we had already secured in the battle against plastic pollution.”

Surveys conducted across the ­country by Keep Scotland Beautiful (KSB) have revealed that at least one PPE item, including face masks, is now littered every 500m.

“We have all seen disposable face marks carelessly disposed of on our streets, in our parks and beaches, since the pandemic began and are ­angry at the lack of respect people show to our beautiful country,” said Paul Wallace, KSB Campaigns and Innovation Manager.

“We want to encourage ­people to dispose of their PPE waste ­responsibly in a bin, or even better, to use reusable PPE instead.

“It is also important that we all check that when putting a mask in our pocket or bag after use it hasn’t accidently been littered. This way we can all play our part in tackling the litter blighting our communities.”

KSB recently joined forces with the Marine Conservation Society and Zero Waste Scotland to raise awareness of the problem and promote the benefits of reusable face coverings. Zero Waste Scotland said single use masks were ­increasingly found contaminating recycling collections as well as littering the countryside.

Zero Waste Scotland’s chief executive Iain Gulland said: “Even though it is a criminal offence that can result in a fixed penalty of up to £80, we have seen a huge rise in face covering litter in recent months.

“This litter can last for decades in the environment and puts many wildlife species at risk of injury, or worse. It is vital people make the switch to reusable face coverings.”