Volunteers’ huge litter haul from harbour
THESE plucky volunteers took to the waters of Bristol Harbour in their battle against litter – and in just two hours fished out enough rubbish to fill 16 bin bags.
The old docks are surrounded by restaurants, bars, shops and a bustling market – and the area pays the price for its popularity with huge amounts of rubbish floating on its surface, creating an eyesore that is also a deadly hazard to the area’s wildlife.
And despite getting a daily clean from harbour staff who pluck out plastic bags, takeaway leftovers, bottles and cans, the volunteers who for the past few years have carried out this deep clean on the first Sunday of each month say things get even worse in the summer when the waterfront is busier.
Volunteer Xeena Cooper, 36, a community artist, said: ‘People converge on the city centre for nights out and all sorts of trash either ends up getting thrown or blown into the harbour.
‘The clean-up is good for morale – people feel like they are doing something about it instead of throwing their hands up in the air in despair.
‘It is really good fun and there is a sense of achievement.’
The group, which numbers about 40 volunteers, use nets on long rods to fish out the rubbish.
Among the 16 bin bags of rubbish collected there was a pumpkin, some nightclub photo-booth photos and books about Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar.
Organisers said recent litter picks have found a cannabis plant, a bicycle and a ‘huge pair of Y fronts’.