To be honest, having lived there, it always looks like this, so why the fuss now?
The amount of rubbish in the city has been described as "embarrassing"
There is growing anger at the level of litter on Cardiff’s streets and in its parks.
Photographs of flytipped items and rubbish strewn across streets have been shared widely over the weekend.
It follows controversy over the amount of litter on Barry Island's main beach on the hottest day of the year last Tuesday.
One woman wrote on Facebook on Saturday: “The things you see walking the streets of Cardiff at 5.30am.
“Never seen so many seagulls, blood, rubbish on the street. Post apocalyptic Britain.”
Over the last week, many complained about overflowing rubbish bins in the city's parks surrounded by discarded trash.
One, Andrew Hill, tweeted pictures at 6.51am on Wednesday morning of four separate overflowing bins around Cathays Park with the hashtag #itsamess.
@cardiffcouncil need to empty the bins #itsamess
A Cardiff councillor, Neil McEvoy AM, tweeted a picture of seagulls swarming over a ripped open litter bag on the pedestrianised part of St Mary Street.
He wrote: “How can our city be allowed to look like this?”
Speaking on Monday, the South Wales Central AM said the state of the city was embarrassing.
“The state of the city has degenerated to the point of being shameful. I’m Cardiff born and bred, but embarrassed at the state of the City, especially the centre.
“The state of Cardiff sums up the state of the Labour Party. A Cardiff Plaid Council will clean up Cardiff in every sense. We will put back on City centre cleansing teams and also re-open our recycling centres like Waungron Road.”
Several people responded to Mr McEvoy’s tweet with pictures showing litter in other areas of Cardiff.
One posted four separate pictures, saying: “Canton is filthy these days and it makes me sad.”
Another, Cardiff businessman Tim Corrigan, sent a picture of Richmond Road in Roath showing litter piled up at the side of the road.
He wrote: “I walk everywhere in the city. It's getting worse, it’s hard to explain to my kids why.”
Many responded to Coun McEvoy’s tweet by sharing their own embarrasment.
One wrote: “A friend from London visited, we went to the Grazing Shed. So embarrassed by this view.”
Another wrote: “Last time I was in Cardiff, I was shocked with all the rubbish.”
Another said: “Same in Pontcanna also. The gutters and pavements strewn with litter. It’s a disgrace.”
Many complained about restaurants putting their trash out early - with the resulting mess when seagulls ripped open the bins.
And there was disagreement over who was to blame with some saying the council should arrange more collections or install better bins.
@cardiffcouncil Mill Lane 7pm Tonight, bloody disgrace
These were just the comments over the last few days.
Several referred to a comment made by Cardiff coffee shop Barker back in June.
Just locking up @CoffeeBarker when some American tourists were walking by saying what a dirty city it is. #NOTgood
Others responded to the story about litter on Barry Island beach, with one saying: “Cardiff is one of the best places to live.. shame about all the selfish people who live here already.”
Cardiff council's environment chief said the local authority "deplored" littering.
Councillor Bob Derbyshire, Cabinet Member for the Environment said: “The council deplores the littering of our city. Most residents feel the same way.
"We would ask those people who are littering our streets and our parks to consider the damage they are doing and the extra burden of costs they are putting on the taxpayer.
"The council spends more than £5m a year cleaning the streets of litter.
“In the city centre we are looking to extend cleansing times at the weekends and we are working with businesses to make sure they present their waste at the right times.
"Presentation of incorrect waste at the wrong times can very quickly make a mess of our streets.
“I would ask businesses and residents to help by using proper food caddies to present their food waste in. We are in the breeding season for seagulls and the birds are intent on scavenging for their young.
"If food waste isn’t put into bags the gulls shouldn’t rip them open. We would also ask businesses with outdoor eating areas to clear away plates quickly to stop encouraging gulls.
“The council recognises this is an issue and is putting a plan together to improve the situation and more details will be revealed soon.
"I can tell you that we will cracking down by issuing fines for littering, flytipping and incorrect presentation of waste bags. We have taken some people to court over the past few weeks for this and they’ve had fines and costs of more than £300 set against them.
“As well as being a lot stronger on enforcement we are also creating a special team to help deep-clean our neighbourhoods. This team will work with community groups to make our streets cleaner.
“It’s worth noting that if plans for the new Cardiff Business Improvement District go ahead then City Centre businesses can play a key role in helping tackle litter in the city centre as well.
"As the scenes from Barry Beach over the weekend showed, we are not alone in having to find ways to tackle this blight.
"This is an issue that we all need to get involved in. Parents need to lead by example showing their children that littering is unacceptable. If we want a cleaner environment then we all need to play our part.
“I want to assure residents we want a tidy Cardiff, but we need your help. Littering is not acceptable and this message needs to come from the people of Cardiff as well as the Council.”
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