Volunteers in Nanaimo continued the momentum from Earth Day, taking out the trash across the city today.
While Earth Day was yesterday, volunteers continued picking up trash Saturday, April 23 across Nanaimo. Among those cleaning things up, a consortium including Nanaimo area Rotary clubs, the Great Nanaimo Garbage Grab Facebook group, Nanaimo Green Faith and Copenhagen bike group members.
The groups collected garbage and transported it to the visitors’ centre, off Northfield Road and Nanaimo Parkway, where it was loaded onto a City of Nanaimo truck.
Jill Mont, Daybreak Rotary Club member and one of the organizers, said there were 20 sites around the city where volunteers “divided and conquered.”
“We’ve cleaned up some abandoned homeless camps and that’s always got some sad things in it,” said Mont when asked about notable items collected. “What’s interesting is when you’re on road-sides there’s a lot of [debris] from accidents. There’s lots of masks nowadays and there’s always [Tim Hortons] cups, but nothing too weird today.”
A Nanaimo Mountain Bike Club-Mosaic Forest Management-Regional District of Nanaimo cleanup event took place in the Doumont Road area, where volunteers picked up trash in forested areas, said Peter Kirillo, Nanaimo Mountain Bike Club member and event director.
“There was a shower insert, a toilet … two TVs and a lot of burn material and it’s gotten to the point now where hand tools don’t suffice anymore, we need equipment,” said Kirillo. “It’s become almost like a landfill. It’s a real issue and it’s becoming a safety concern as well.”
Mont said 70 people contributed to the event at the visitors’ centre, with 2,100 pounds of garbage. Kirillo estimated 25 volunteers assisted in the Doumont event with five truck-loads of garbage collected.
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