Hiker reports issue after witnessing concerning scene at pond in local nature reserve: 'It genuinely boggles the mind'

A hiker made a disturbing discovery at a nature reserve in Scotland that shows how some humans blatantly disregard the environment.

One Redditor posted a photo in the r/iamatotalpieceofs*** subreddit of a "pristine" lochan in Aberdeenshire that was sullied by a car exhaust dumped in the middle of the pond. The poster pointed out that the person who left it "went to great effort to get this here" and added that there was other pollution at the remote location.

"It genuinely boggles the mind," the user wrote in a comment. "The route we took to get there is 30 mins on foot along sea cliffs. There's a slightly shorter approach from nearby farmland I guess it could have been brought down there using a quad bike. There's other s*** like empty motor oil containers been thrown in as well."

One commenter suggested that the original poster report their findings to the staff that runs the nature reserve and they responded, "Good shout! Have pulled the geolocation of the lochan off of [the] photo and forwarded coordinates to the wildlife trust that looks after the site."

The car exhaust and other debris in the lochan were likely left by "tourons," which are a blend of "tourist" and "moron" and describe tourists who act irresponsibly or unwisely in natural settings. Some visitors to national parks and other wildlife areas sometimes put themselves and the wildlife in danger by getting too close for photos or interactions or by not respecting the natural habitat. 

Dumping a car exhaust in a beautiful body of water seems to be an extreme case of carelessness for the environment. Practices like this disrespect wildlife, visitors to the nature reserve, and the park rangers who protect the ecosystem.

Respect for the environment is necessary for understanding how our daily actions and broader systems contribute to the planet's changing climate. Properly disposing of waste can help reduce our impact on the environment.

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