Oxford City Council has pleaded for people to stop littering as the amount of rubbish has 'increased horribly'

The council said ODS is clearing more than three tonnes of litter from Port Meadow each day, roughly the same weight as a white rhino.

Since last spring, the amount of rubbish left strewn across the city’s parks and green spaces in warmer weather has gone up, the council said.

This means not only spoiling the enjoyment of parks and green spaces for people, but also causing death and serious injuries to animals.

A poll shared by the Oxford Mail yesterday revealed one in three people said litter in their area is worse than ever before.

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Oxford City Council statement read: “Three tonnes is a lot. Every single item of discarded rubbish helps contribute to a hazardous mass of unhealthy, harmful and dangerous litter that costs everyone living in Oxford a significant amount to remove and dispose of.

“This is just Port Meadow. The scale of the problem is much greater across the entire city. Please don’t drop litter. Every item taken home and disposed of properly helps to relieve the burden on everyone who is proud to live in our wonderful city.”

To find out more about volunteer litter-picking, visit the OxClean website.