A MUSSELBURGH beauty spot has been marred by the illegal dumping of rubbish.

A member of the public reported flytipping at the Musselburgh Lagoons to East Lothian Council.

The area is widely recognised as one of Scotland’s premier locations for birds and bird watching, and has hosted Scotland’s Big Nature Festival.

A council spokesperson said: “We are aware of a number of household items that have been illegally dumped at Musselburgh Lagoons following a report submitted by a member of the public.

“We are currently working to clear this.

“Flytipping is illegal and it poses a danger to both people and wildlife, as well as blighting the beautiful open spaces that we enjoy here in East Lothian.

“East Lothian Council has a number of recycling centres across the county which are open seven days a week, and we operate a free bulky waste uplift service for items which are too big to transport yourself. We encourage people to use these services and to report any cases of flytipping to us, so that we can stamp out flytipping for good.

“Offenders should be aware that the council will pursue the recovery of costs incurred as a result of removing flytipped rubbish through civil recovery procedures.”

The bird reserve and lagoons have gained national recognition for their importance for wildfowl and wading birds and were notified as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in 2001.

These areas are the only major high water roost sites between Cramond and Aberlady Bay and have also been included in the Firth of Forth Special Protection Area (SPA) and Ramsar designations.