EVIDENCE of drug use has been found amongst litter left behind by people in Herefordshire’s countryside.

A pile of litter and nitrous oxide cannisters have been found in a field in Sutton St Nicholas, in north Herefordshire.

Nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, can cause permanent damage in the central nervous system, paralysis and can even be fatal.

People open the canister, put the gas into a container, usually a balloon, then inhale from the balloon.

Hereford Times: A pile of litter and laughing gas canisters found in Sutton St NicholasA pile of litter and laughing gas canisters found in Sutton St Nicholas

In the summer of 2020 locals in Symonds Yat West and Whitchurch, near Ross-on-Wye, felt uncomfortable after they found laughing gas canisters, a soiled swimming costume and dozens of disposable barbecues left next to the river Wye.

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Then just a month later in July Paul Rone, Conservative councillor for Redhill, saw a huge increase in the number of cannisters dumped, such as places near the river Wye, during his time volunteering with a litter group.

He said a couple of group picks have gone ahead in the last couple of years, but members have all been out there working solo, and he has come across them all the time but some of the group will find multiple canisters on occasions.

Now, a national trade body is urging Government to act on its call to ban nitrous oxide in the wake of a worrying new trend.

Hereford Times: The pile of litter and canisters were found in a field in Sutton, north HerefordshireThe pile of litter and canisters were found in a field in Sutton, north Herefordshire

The British Compressed Gases Association (BCGA) highlighted reports people misusing the gas are buying it in containers 70 times bigger than previously.

Currently, nitrous oxide can be bought in shops or online, but since March 2020, BCGA has been campaigning for a ban on retail sales, making the product unavailable to the public, while protecting access for legitimate uses in industry and healthcare.

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Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in 2019, revealed half a million young people had misused nitrous oxide and that it was included on the death certificate in 12 per cent of substance-related deaths.

Ellen Daniels, chief executive of the association, said: “The sight of small silver canisters left as litter is an indicator that nitrous oxide has been misused, but discarded containers of 560g or larger is a new and worrying trend.

“Nitrous oxide is often trivialised through slang terms such as laughing gas, balloons and noz, but inhaling this gas can be highly dangerous – even fatal in some cases.

“We’re calling on the Government to introduce a ban on consumer sales of nitrous oxide to make it less easy for people to purchase, but allow for legitimate uses in the medical, food, chemical and sports industries.”