‘Waste Warriors’ target litter
Three brothers are on a mission to keep Horowhenua’s parks, roadsides and coastlines free of rubbish.
Brendon, 5, Caleb, 7, and Anthony Hazel, 8, can be found with their rubbish pick-up tool and brush and shovel collecting litter at least two days a week. Sometimes they’re at it for hours.
The boys, dubbed the Waste Warriors, are driven by the negative effects litter has on wildlife. They do not want birds or sea life to die by consuming rubbish.
Their father, Josh Hazel, said he was proud of the boys’ determination, and hoped it would make people aware that littering was not cool.
‘‘Our kids are cleaning up your rubbish. It’s sad that they have to.’’
Their first trash target was filling up a trolley of rubbish at Levin Adventure Park last year. That one good deed has become a serious crusade.
Brendon said he enjoyed everything about picking up rubbish.
One time at the Adventure Park he found a string of plastic. He was not happy.
‘‘A bird could have eaten it and would have died.’’
Brendon said if he saw someone throwing rubbish out their car window, he would tell the ‘‘litter critter’’ to go pick it up.
‘‘I like to see the park clean.’’ Anthony said clean-ups were fun, and Caleb enjoyed using their many accessories: litter pick-up poles, a shovel and brush, a bucket, and unlimited supply of rubbish bags.
Mum Janelle Cody said the boys’ clean-up sessions were often spontaneous, insisting she pull the car over if they see rubbish in need of picking up.
She was surprised at the attitude of some adults, who often laughed and stared at the boys picking up rubbish.
Cody said if the boys could encourage others to be aware of their littering, or pick up rubbish, it would be a win.
The trio were awarded the Keep New Zealand Beautiful Tidy Kiwi Volunteers of the Month award in June, and Recreational Services donated them clean-up gear to help them on their quest.
Recreational Services Horowhenua team manager Morag Collins said it liked to encourage people to get involved and keep the district tidy.
‘‘Everyone could be looking after our community.’’
The Horowhenua District Council contracts Recreational Services to look after the parks and reserves in the district. The team visited each of the parks and reserves daily to pick up rubbish, garden and clean up.
Collins said the Levin Adventure Park was one of the worst parks for rubbish dumping, as were rural areas on the edge of town.
People can follow the boys’ progress on Facebook.