The Barbecues are back!

Some people are very angry at the selfish behaviour of a few users of the Meadows and Links. On the golf course especially they are particularly cross when people burn the grass with barbecues. Here's what one keen golfer has to say:

"The sun has been shining all week and during Thursday evening’s Club competition it was clear to all that various BBQ’s were smoking away all evening, resulting in more damage to the grass (greens) in the area of the Winter 9-hole course and close by the 20th tee area on the summer 36-holes. Needless to say Council staff/environmental wardens/community police were all conspicuous by their absence to provide the evening cover, which I understood would be pre-planned during the BBQ hotspot periods of the summer months.

There is every likelihood that with the current warm spell of weather, this same area suffered similarly on Wednesday evening?

It is clear that there is insufficient coverage of BBQ signs on the area of the Short Hole Golf Courses between Marchmont Road & Whitehouse Loan, an area that has been defined as a “No BBQ sites” area. Even the few signs that are currently on lamp-posts are positioned far to high (10-12 feet) to be able to be read by even the tallest ‘BBQ vandal’."

Is it fair to blame the Council staff and the Police? Surely users of the Meadows and Links should be more responsible.

If you must barbecue please don't burn the grass

See the bbq map
See the bbq leaflet
See below for the Council's response.
See the Evening News article

Here are some pictures taken recently (See also our Current Issues page.)

In reply, a Council official said:

All three of our Park Rangers have been deployed to the Meadows and Bruntsfield Links over the last few days, and have engaged with people BBQing, asking people to move on to the sites provided when necessary, handing out leaflets and providing black bags for litter. Our resources in the evening are very limited as you know but we did have a Park Ranger in the park until the end of their shift at 6.15pm. Our Environmental Wardens also carry out patrols, and we ask the night time Environmental Wardens to help out when they can, although they do of course also have demands elsewhere in the city at night. The Wardens resources have been limited this week and as a result have not been able to carry out patrols, but the Environmental Warden Team Leader will ensure the park is included in patrols as a priority wherever possible on warm days / evenings.

The Park Rangers also put additional signage up yesterday. I note your feedback about the height of these signs. There is a balance to be struck between ensuring people can read them, and also ensuring they can’t be easily torn down / become a hazard. David Doig is visiting the park this afternoon to review the positioning of the signs and to look at the extent of any damage to the golf course caused by people BBQing.

Our Task Force were deployed to the park early this morning to ensure the area was cleaned up as quickly as possible after the volume of people enjoying the park yesterday. Our cleansing staff always prioritise the Meadows and Bruntsfield Links following a warm day and will continue to do so through the summer.

Sarah Burns, Neighbourhood Manager, South Neighbourhood
Backround picture Ian Rutherford. © Scotsman Newspapers 2012. Used with permission.