Somerset council worker cuts plastic grass to remove weeds on Yeovil roundabout

A council has issued an apology after one of its workers was pictured using a strimmer on artificial grass at a roundabout in Somerset.

Nigel Castle, 49, was driving through Yeovil when he saw the South Somerset District Council worker using a strimmer to try to remove weeds growing up through the synthetic grass.

He was so surprised, he asked his niece to take a photograph and posted it to Twitter saying: "The amount of micro plastic going straight into the waterways is frightening."

In response, a council spokesperson said its officers should pick weeds by hand and confirmed additional training will be provided.

But Mr Castle, who is from Yeovil, stressed his issue was not with the individual worker but with the use of plastic grass.

He called for the damaged plastic to be removed because of its negative environmental impact.

"Nature needs as much help as we can give it at this time of ecological crisis," he said.

"There are many alternatives that could have been used."

The council said it installed artificial grass on the roundabout when an increase in traffic made it "increasingly difficult and dangerous" to access it for mowing.

The authority said artificial grass requires less frequent maintenance.

"We will assess whether any other mitigation measures can be put in place on the site, or in the immediate locality, to improve biodiversity while also taking the risks we have mentioned into account."