38 bags of garbage collected from atop Armour Hill during cleanup
Thirty-eight bags of trash were collected from Armour Hill in Peterborough during the hilltop community cleaning event on Saturday.
About 60 volunteers joined organizers with the Ashburnham Memorial Stewardship Group for the community event. They met at the Heritage Pavilion, on the top of Armour Hill near the Peterborough Museum and Archives.
Bags of garbage were collected along with cigarette butts. The butts were collected separately to be sent to TerraCycle for recycling.
“The volunteers included people of all ages, from toddlers to youth to seniors, and many volunteers also brought their pets to the event,” wrote Jenn McCallum, co-founders of the Ashburnham Memorial Stewardship Group (AMSG), in an email to the Peterborough Examiner. “With this number of people coming out, the cleanup was both thorough and quick.”
The event is organized by the Ashburnham Memorial Stewardship Group which was founded in June 2021 in order to advocate for positive changes to Ashburnham Memorial Park, known locally as Armour Hill.
“It is hoped that these changes will increase stewardship and respect for the historical and environmental aspects of this park (bird watching, hiking, astronomy, war memorial ceremonies, school visits, tourism etc.), while decreasing the known negative behaviours that occur on the hill (speeding, reckless driving, breaking bottles, garbage dumping, illegal fireworks, etc.),” read a release promoting the event.
The stewardship group is comprised of volunteers who meet monthly to discuss issues and ideas for the park and to liaise with city councillors representing Ashburnham Ward.
To date, the Arenas, Parks and Recreation Advisory committee, the Museum and Archives Advisory committee and the Police Services Board have reportedly been receptive to this information and to working with the AMSG toward positive change within Ashburnham Memorial Park.