STROUD and District Angling Club says bread thrown into the lake at Stratford Park is causing problems.

While visitors are welcome to feed bread to the ducks on the sides of the lake, it says food should not be thrown into the water.

In a letter to the SNJ, Ian Robinson, club secretary, writes: “May I, through the pages of your publication, appeal to the kind hearted folk of Stroud who like to feed the ducks at Stratford Park to please refrain from doing so in the actual lake itself?

“The reason being that so much bread goes in to the water that the ducks sometimes end up having to paddle through it.

“We have, on occasion, seen bread floating from one end to the other.

“Problems can arise when all this uneaten bread sinks to the bottom and breaks down.

“This can lead to an algal bloom and possible oxygen depletion in the water, further leading to fish kills.

“If the algae involved happens to be the infamous blue/green algae, this can be toxic to all the waterfowl, pets and people too.

“The solution is simple; please feed the ducks either on the bank or in the river where the water is flowing and such problems will not arise.

“This message is clearly signed around the lake as a request from the Environment Agency, so don’t just take my word for it.

“On a personal note, I fail to understand how people who are thoughtful enough to give our feathered friends a helping hand will then allow this sentiment to be negated by allowing the bread bags to blow along the banks and end up in the “water, with all the hazards that this then presents to all the wildlife around the lake.

“There are bins available, so please use them.

“Also, would the person who insists upon discarding the blue rubber gloves that I find and retrieve on a monotonously regular basis please cease and desist?”