Blyton: A visitor to Owlet Nature Reserve was shocked at the amount of litter

The resident, who did not want to be named, couldn’t believe the amount of household waste which had been dumped at the nature reserve.

He said: “The Owlets reserve is a lovely little wood owned by The Woodland Trust and its members, it was obtained and given nature reserve status to try and preserve and protect the flora and fauna of the area.

“It wasn’t set up as a dog toilet, rubbish dump or somewhere you can come and chop trees down or pick up logs for free firewood.

“The woodland trust allows open access to the public and as a nature lover and member I would ask those of you who do use the facility, please stop abusing it, don’t dump your rubbish, take it to the tip, it’s free, take your bottles, cans and soiled wipes and nappies away, clean up after your dog and please don’t let your dogs run freely through the undergrowth, keep them on the paths. This not only reflects badly on the few considerate, responsible dog walkers who do keep their dogs on the paths and clean up after them, but it also puts young children at risk of disease and other dogs at risk of becoming infected if the dog responsible has an infection.

“During one of my very frequent walks around the woods I picked up several empty beer cans and bottles along with about a dozen cans from of a high energy drink.

“Research has shown that where dogs run free in reserves wildlife reduces by 40 per cent, which is why most nature reserves now do not allow dogs at all, and those that do usually have restrictions such as the dog must be on a lead.”

Mark Feather, Woodland Trust site manager, said: “We would please ask anyone who uses Owlet or any of our woods locally to leave them as they are found.

“Fly tipping costs us tens of thousands of pounds every year across the UK to clear up and littering is also a constant problem, but both are something that are a result of laziness and disregard for nature.

“We manage our woods for the benefit of people and wildlife, but we need visitors to support us by taking care when they visit too.”