A huge 'well done'and thank you' to the hardy souls who turned up and braved the showers (and hail) on the first organised Avon Gorge Towpath Cleanup. After the four hour clean up operation the result was a large pile of plastic bin liners full of rubbish of plastics, tins and glass and general rubbish - all sorted for recycling.
The event was initiated by active member, Fi Radford, who was out walking the dog along the River Avon tow path and she was appalled at the amount of plastic and debris that was washed up on the banks of the river. At our February meeting it was suggested that World Earth Day (Sunday 22nd April) would be such an apt day for clean up action. As it happened Bristol City Council were proposing a similar, but longer term project involving a range of interested parties such as Sustrans, Natural England, The National Trust, and users of the tow path including the dynamic Megan. Gary Brentnall (Area Environment Officer) was therefore very keen at the idea of helping to co-ordinate the day. Gary generously supplied us with the essential kit - rubbish bags, litter grabbing rods, hi-viz jackets and gloves.
The weather forecast for the day was ominous with prospects of showers, but the morning looked promising with blue skies. As midday approached - so did the clouds and our band of volunteers were resolute in their determination to carry on plucking up the rubbish despite the rain and at one point, hail! I think we were all amazed at how much rubbish there was, in particular the huge number of small pieces of polystyrene! Amongst the usual rubbish were a few oddities including flip flops, a few plastic ducks, fishing floats, etc, So, where the hell does it all come from? Well, most of this debris had come from the sea and was washed inland by the Avon's tide. In this 'throw away' society we live in, we must remind ourselves ... there is no 'away'. Our rubbish invariably comes back to us one way or another and it rarely goes away.
Now, if I was a bird, fish or river dwelling mammal I am sure I would have possibly viewed those polystyrene bits as tasty morsels of food. And this is only one side of the problem as hundreds of thousands of animals and fish die from ingesting or getting caught up in this debris. It is estimated that a plastic bottle in the sea will decompose over 450 years, but it doesn't disappear - it just breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces. Marine life cannot avoid eating the minute pieces of plastic as they feed. Neither can they avoid the slow release of potentially toxic chemicals that occur during the process of decomposition. For example, Bisphenol A, which is suspected of affecting the reproduction cycle of animals, can be released. We are aware there are huge rafts of rubbish in our ocean - 90% of which are made up of plastic. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is said to be twice the size of the state of Texas, containing an estimated 100 million tonnes of rubbish. Some may argue that with 70% of the world's surface covered by water, our oceans are huge and can handle this abuse. But bit by bit we are poisoning and polluting our wonderful and diverse marine and river habitats. "It's OK, the sea will wash it all away", must be the idotic thinking of some people, but as I mentioned earlier ... there is no 'away'. In reality we are bound to be affecting the intricate ecosystems that ultimately all species depend on ... including us!
Of course, one solution to the problem is to recycle more of our waste. So great to know that this year Bristol City Council is introducing roadside collection of most household plastics in a bid to increase the city's commitment to recycling. Today on World Earth Day we made our own contribution towards a cleaner environment. It is good to know that the County Council will be continuing to organise clean-up sessions involving the different interested parties. Further sessions will be publicised on the new Avon Gorge Towpath Cleanup Group Facebook page.
Many thanks to Fi and Gary for their work in organising the afternoon session. And again well done to all those who turned up to support the event, despite the April showers/downpours! Photos of the day can be found on Flickr:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/48798428@N02/sets/72157629511666416/
Comments