Cuddles and Co. have been visiting the Brock Burn in the Southside to lift the metal objects dumped in nature by careless locals.
They are calling on nearby companies, including Silverburn Shopping Centre, Marks and Spencer and Tesco, to take more responsibility for the problem.
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Paul Devenay, also known as Cuddles, is the founder of the group.
He said the piles in the water are not only an eyesore but also cause serious pollution.
He explained: “The whole ecosystem gets ruined. It’s harmful to the fish, ducks and the whole wildlife.
“Sometimes we clean up ones that have been lying there for more than a year. They are rusty and that rust is travelling through the water system.
“To me, it’s a no-brainer to clean it up.
“What we want is to come out here to walk the dog and not see all of this. It’s disgusting.”
Joining him were Paul McGeachin, nicknamed Rusty Leg, and Sandy MacKintosh, The Viking.
The Glasgow Times joined the group one Sunday afternoon, as the volunteers spotted dozens of shopping trolleys.
As they used grappling hooks to drag the heavy items out, often buried under several layers of mud and branches, they explained that a large shopping trolley costs £150, while a smaller one is worth £100.
Once out, they arranged for the mountains of items to be uplifted.
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The magnet fishers say they are happy to do the work, which is great for their mental and physical health, but they insist the supermarkets are not doing enough to stop customers from dumping them in the first place.
Cuddles continued: “These things are our bane. This is not even what the group is about.
“Usually, we throw our magnets in and see what we can find.
“We’ve already cleared this place about a year and a half ago.
“And just before Christmas, somebody messaged the group asking if we could come back because the place is a mess again.
“It’s getting worse. It’s disgusting.
“All we want is the companies to take responsibility.”
He added that Marks and Spencer has previously engaged with the group and sent out staff to collect the abandoned objects, but the men are urging more involvement.
Rusty Leg said: “We would be quite happy if the companies donated to charity to thank us for the work.
“We have told them before to let us know when it gets really bad and we will come out – free of charge.”
Passers-by are often supportive of the mission as well, stopping and engaging with the group, who are happy to talk about the project.
They also run a Facebook group with nearly 60 members following their updates.
He continued: “I’ve been magnet fishing now for seven years, Paul has been here for about six and a half years and Sandy has been around for one year.
“We have other people showing up as well. Two weeks ago, we got 34 shopping trolleys out. Last week, we reached 29.
“When we went to Clydebank, we reached 58 in a single day.
“Then, we phone a scrap man who takes the metal parts and the old ones away. For the new ones, we call the shops and tell them we pulled them out.
“Sometimes we have to go in wearing waders. It’s just disgusting.”
A Tesco spokesperson said: “We’re sorry about this, and we’d like to thank the volunteers for their work in helping keep the local area clean and tidy.
“We encourage all customers to return their trolleys once they have finished their shopping, both for others to use and because we don’t want them to cause any harm to the local environment.
“We use a specialist company to retrieve our trolleys, and we’d ask anyone who sees an abandoned Tesco trolley to use the Trolleywise website to report this, or let their local store know so we can get it back as soon as possible.
A Silverburn spokesperson said: “We work closely with Tesco and Marks and Spencer to deter trolley misuse, including the introduction of signage at Silverburn exits and near the Brock Burn and encouraging the use of the Trolleywise app to report abandoned trolleys.
“We support any community efforts that help protect the surrounding local environment and wildlife, and we thank those helping to keep the Brock Burn clean.”
Marks and Spencer has been approached for comment.
