A RISHTON councillor has called for more people to take pride in the litter-filled Leeds-Liverpool Canal running through the town.

Councillor Jennet Liddle said local groups worked hard to keep the area clean but realised there would always be irresponsible people who drop litter.

She said: “It’s extremely sad that some people dump litter and don’t respect the community, the environment or nature.

“We want to encourage people to use and enjoy the canal. It’s a fantastic resource that we have in Rishton and it’s a crying shame people don’t look after it.”

The stretch of the canal running from High Street bridge to Spring Street bridge has also been branded an eyesore by an environmental group.

Colin Cooper from Rishton Prospects said the stretch of the canal and towpath between Church and Rishton was littered with rubbish – and looks terrible at this time of year due to the lack of foliage.

He said: “It’s always bad at this time of year because there’s always rubbish, but it doesn’t show up as much during the summer months when all the plants are growing.

“During the summer months, British Waterways has a patrol barge which passes through and picks up a lot of rubbish at the side, and sometimes it does some dredging, but it should operate more during the winter months.”

Mr Cooper said every now and then volunteers from the Prospects group spend time litter-picking along that stretch. On the last collection volunteers collected four sacks of recyclables and around a dozen black bags of non-recyclable litter.

He added: “Unfortunately there’s nothing you can do to stop people dropping litter. People are just irresponsible.”

John Clayton of British Waterways said routine maintenance was carried out throughout the year.

He said: “There are hundreds of square miles of canal to look after, but routine maintenance and clearing does take place on a regular basis throughout the year.

“The winter is best for us in maintenance terms because we prepare for the high season. We can’t carry out the work when the canal is full of boats.”