November 18, 2005
Bird lovers could be landed with £50 fines for feeding gulls in Burnham
Holidaymakers and residents in Burnham-On-Sea who feed seagulls or pigeons could face fines of up to £50 from next spring.
Sedgemoor District Council is considering whether it can use new powers under the government’s Clean Neighbourhood and Environment Act 2005 to introduce the fines.
Signs along Burnham seafront like the one pictured here near the Sailing Club already advise people not to feed birds, but these are often ignored.
Environment bosses at the district council therefore feel fines might be the only way to stamp out the problem.
Frank Ball, Sedgemoor’s environmental protection manager, said: “We’ve had complaints about the feeding of gulls for years. The law is currently very pro-bird.”
“Birds aren’t pests and we can only kill them under certain circumstances. This makes it very difficult for us to do anything about nuisance birds.”
He added: “It would be a policy decision whether or not to enforce a ban on feeding. There is a possibility the council will because of the complaints we get and because the gull population depends on their food supply.”
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