ENVIRONMENTALISTS have condemned businesses and litter louts in Radcliffe for turning the town's river banks into a rubbish dump.

They fear for the area's wildlife if action is not taken to clear up the mess by the River Irwell. And one man has even vowed to clean up the bank himself if nothing is done about it.

Cartons, wrappers and packets, many of which had contained food from the nearby McDonald's fast food restaurant, have been dumped along the banking which runs behind the Asda store on Pilkington Way.

Jack Aiken, who lives near to the river, has made complaints to Bury Council about the state of the area, but was told by bosses they were not responsible for the upkeep of the riverbank.

Mr Aiken said: "The rubbish, some of which is from McDonald's and Asda, has been washed up on the sides of the river bed, and looks a mess which I hate.

"I sometimes help to clean up in Outwood Park. The rangers know I do this because I don't like there being litter around and the effect it has on the wildlife. I suffer from deep vein thrombosis but I feel so strongly, I would clean it up myself.

"I have made complaints to the council and to local councillors but I seem to be getting passed from pillar to post. It is getting close to the nesting season, and I do a bird count along the river, but fear that this litter could kill them."

Bury Council has said that the owners of businesses along the riverbank are responsible for keeping the banks clean, and if they found evidence of fly-tipping, they would prosecute.

A spokesman for the council said: "This is a message for businesses as much as residents. Everyone has a responsibility to help the council ensure a cleaner, safer, greener borough. We had a complaint last week from an environmentalist concerned about the effects on wildlife and we are investigating claims that some businesses were throwing stuff down the banking."

Much of the rubbish found alongside the river bed was from the McDonald's restaurant.

A spokesman for the restaurant chain said: "McDonald's has a very thorough waste management system in place, we only use registered waste contractors who have a certified duty of care. At store level, among other things, we supply waste bins in and around our restaurants.

"We conduct thorough litter patrols a minimum of three times per day and all of our packaging features the Tidy Britain Group logo, to actively encourage our customers to dispose of their litter thoughtfully. Unfortunately a very small minority of our customers do not take this responsible attitude. We will look into the opportunity for bin placement and extending our litter patrols in this area."

Asda was unavailable for comment.