‘Help me clear roadside rubbish’

A fed-up businessman is donning a hi-vis jacket and arming himself with a litter picker as he bids to kickstart a roadside rubbish-clearing revolution. Ralph Noel, who ran the former Bing strip club before turning his hand to housing developments, believes the district is in dire need of a clean up. Verges along main roads including the A2 and Thanet Way are continually strewn with rubbish, while undergrowth off smaller B-roads is also targeted by littering drivers. Ralph, who lives in Dunkirk, is planning to spend a couple of hours each week clearing roadsides of unwanted waste. “They’re just covered in rubbish,” he said. “I think it’s a real reflection of where our country is at the moment. “It is very noticeable for anyone driving through the district. It’s sad and no one likes it, yet not much is done about it. “I’ve been out and tried doing it - I find it quite rewarding. It might sound silly but it gives me pleasure to know I’ve done a good deed for the community; I get something from it. “I’d like others to join me. I’m not suggesting we do clean-ups along the side of the A2 as the verges are difficult to reach, but if there is an appetite from people to do it, then we’ll get out to other parishes and clean them up.” Mr Noel, who will supply litter pickers and jackets, has erected yellow signs in Dunkirk telling people to think twice about dumping their rubbish. Canterbury City Council spent £40,000 last year in an effort to tidy up the A2 and Thanet Way. Tonnes of rubbish, including plastic bottles filled with urine and the carcass of a wild boar, were successfully removed. Litter, however, is again noticeable along the district’s main roads as lazy drivers continue to ignore pleas to take their waste home with them. To register your interest in joining Mr Noel’s litter-clearing group, email tidycanterburyup@ gmail.com. n What do you think? Email kentishgazette@thekmgroup. co.uk.