Empty bottles, bricks, bags of rubbish, an abandoned car and even a burned-out caravan have been left next to a north-east cemetery by a group of travellers.
The group pitched up in a private field overlooking Fetteresso Cemetery, on the outskirts of Stonehaven, earlier this summer.
The number of caravans within the camp varied over the last two months, but they have now all gone – leaving behind bin bags of rubbish, a car and even a treadmill.
Last night, furious members of the community called for more powers to prosecute travellers for leaving such a “disgraceful” mess behind.
One local resident, who did not wish to be named, said: “There’s been such a mess left behind.
“It’s so disrespectful leaving all that rubbish next to the graveyard – they seem to get away with everything.
“Something needs to be done about it.
“It really annoys me. I’m a lorry driver, if I got caught with oil coming out of my truck I would get prosecuted, but nothing happens in a situation like this.
“Nobody has a problem with them, it’s the mess that they make.”
The encampment of around 10 caravans and vehicles had been parked in a private field overlooking the graveyard on August 18.
The group moved onto the site shortly after being evicted from near Dunnottar Woods car park.
Much of the field has been severely damaged by the tracks of the traveller’s vehicles, and a caravan – parked just feet away from the graveyard’s boundary wall – has been set on fire and reduced to just its frame.
Large quantities of building materials were also left strewn across the field.
Stonehaven councillor Wendy Agnew visited the site over the weekend to see the mess for herself, and is furious at what has been left behind.
“It’s disgraceful that anyone could leave land in that condition,” she said.
“I think they should be taken to court, and people should not be giving them work. It’s obvious that people have been giving them work because of the bricks and paving
that have been left all over the field.
“I’m not sure how much this would be to get cleaned up, but it won’t be cheap.
“It’s an absolute disgrace.”
North East MSP Lewis Macdonald, who has previously called for travellers to show respect, said he was shocked at what had been left at the site.
He said: “It’s simply not good enough, whether you’re a settled or a traveller, neighbourly behaviour is very important and these people clearly do not care about being good neighbours.
“I think it reinforces the point that councils need to be able to deal with these circumstances in a way that’s fair on everybody.
“What worries me most is that it seems these travellers, or whoever has done this, have set one of the caravans on fire very close to the graveyard.
“You don’t have the right to dispose of your property however you want, you have to do it in a way that is environmentally safe and fire safe.
“It’s simply not acceptable behaviour.”
A spokeswoman for Aberdeenshire Council said: “We will look into the complaints that have been raised.”
