Research by a Bracknell waste company has found that nearly 40,000 disposable face masks are being binned in the town a day.
But many of them are being dumped in the street or in streams and rivers.
Disposable masks are typically made from three types of plastic and concerns are being raised about the effect on the environment after so many of them have been discarded in the open.
Ear loops and metal piece used to grip the nose can become entangled around animals and wildlife too.
Charlotte Green from Bracknell waste company TradeWaste.co.uk, which carried out the research, said: “If you walk around Bracknell today you will see disposable face masks being blown around with leaves in the gutter – they are the new cigarette butt – people are simply chucking them after use.
"We know that 39,138 are being sent to landfill each day in Bracknell – but just how many end-up elsewhere is the very scary part."
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The findings also found that 58.8 million face masks are being used each day in the UK. And 53.3m face masks are being sent to landfill in a day too.
Action needs to be take to cope with managing waste after the arrival of face masks, Ms Green added.
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