Important:   Litter can be contaminated, so we have put together some information to help you handle it safely. Please click on this link to have a read through our Health and Safety Guidance before you go out litter-picking.

 

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 6

Green Pastures,Bishopswood,nr Chard,TA20 3RS

12 Mar 2016

00:00

Our 6th Parish Litter Pick. Come and join us - meet at the Parish Hall in Bishopswood (TA20 3RS) at 9.30am. Pick for a couple of hours, then back to the hall for a hot drink and a bacon/veggie roll. If you are free in the afternoon, help sort out recycling. You don't have to live in Otterford to help keep this part of the Blackdown Hills AONB beautiful. OTTERFORD PARISH LITTER PICK - 6 MARCH 2016 # Our thanks to Whitbread plc (who own Costa Coffee) for the donation of litter-pickers and hoops # 24 Pickers (and 2 Base Team) collected 64 sacks of litter, 5 tyres, 7 hubcaps and miscellaneous items # After sorting, 604 drinks cans, 653 plastic bottles, 98 glass bottles, and assorted metal were recycled If our Litter Picks were episodes of Star Wars …….. Episode 6 would be ‘Return of The Litter Lout’. At the end of the Last Pick in November 2015 we wondered if we had turned the corner, after collecting much less litter than ever before.

Now we know that Episode 5 was ‘A False Hope’. Prior to this Pick the Parish Council considered whether we should ‘Clean For The Queen’ – a project encouraging volunteers to undertake a major national clean up to commemorate the Queen’s 90th birthday in 2016. Whilst any additional litter picking is commendable and to be encouraged we felt the hype, the celebrities/politicians photo-shots, and the lack of practical (and preferably financial) support meant it was not for us. Rather we will continue to pick for us! Yet again almost every road in the Parish was cleared – and we have offers from various people who will collect litter from everywhere else in the coming days. In two hours our twenty four volunteers – including eight new faces - collected 64 sacks of litter, and a range of other things including seven hub caps, five car tyres, rubble, old carpet, odds and ends of scrap metal, and redundant road signs. This is a considerable increase on the 38 sacks we collected at the last Pick in November 2015. What is staggering is that just about all this litter has accumulated since that last Pick 4½ months ago. As ever, a substantial amount of litter came from food wrappings - the largest single amount again was from McDonalds (including 53 drinks cartons) – but we also had wrappers and cups/bottles from Burger King, KFC, Tesco, Sainsburys, Morrisons, Asda, Waitrose, Pepsi Cola, Costa Coffee, and Marks & Spencer. Still on ‘as ever’, we collected more Coca Cola Group plastic bottles and drinks cans than from any other manufacturer. We also continued to collect a noticeable number of Red Bull cans. and Lucozade bottles. And two changes this month. We picked up 127 plastic milk bottles – mostly the 4 pint size. Who on earth drives to the Blackdown Hills to dump milk bottles? And a sudden surge in Tesco Apple drink cans – 47, all found in just one location! Who, locally, likes Tesco apple drink? One final statistic – 63 different people have participated in our 6 litter picks, an average of 25 per Pick. The Parish Council now owns sufficient litter-pickers, vests and hoops to kit out all volunteers – thanks to major donations from Litteraction and Whitbread plc. We have bought kitbags, sharps boxes, dog waste bags and first aid kits – and continue to fund the after Pick refreshments. We are grateful to McDonalds Taunton and Taunton Deane Borough Council who, in the past, have loaned us some equipment and continue to supply refuse sacks. But we are disappointed not to have received a reply from Screwfix Taunton and McDonalds Taunton regarding sponsorship for additional items – now principally some temporary road signs and a litter bin for the layby at the top of Corfe Hill. And the Coca Cola company told us we 'do not fit within its overall community investment priorities' when we sought grant funding. According to their website, one of the four issues it focuses on is ‘community recycling’!! Our next Parish Litter Pick is on Saturday 26th November 2016 - meeting at the Parish Hall, in Bishopswood (TA20 3RS) at 9.30am..

upcoming Events

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past Events

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 20

Our 20th Pick. Will any of our Pickers have managed to attend all 20 (and to date 2 have managed all 18. and another one 17 out of 18) and be the first to be awarded the first coveted Bronze Hub Caps?...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 19

Our 19th Pick - 'A Pick Like Almost no Other' - will be organised like the 18th Pick in July. If you plan to pick you must register in advance with the Parish Clerk (see website for details) - please ...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 18

Our 18th Litter Pick - 'A Pick Like No Other' - will be going ahead on Saturday 11th July. It will bear no resemblance to the 17 that have gone before - with no pre or post meet, no refreshments, and...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 17

- As the UK appeared to be moving towards lock-down we wondered just how much this would affect our 17th Pick. The answer was ‘not much’ - 29 volunteers turned-up on the morning, with 25 ...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 16

.. Earlier light rain had cleared by the time we started, and we had a record turnout of 29 pickers, plus a base team of five (who put out warning road signs and lucked them up again, collected the fu...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 15

.. Our Summer Pick. Always a quieter day because of absences on holiday etc, so we were delighted when 19 pickers (plus a base team of 2) turned up. For once the weather was just ‘normal’...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 14

.. We pick in all weathers! A year ago it was snowing as we picked; during our last Pick in November 2018 the heavy mist just about cleared by the time we started. Today - in one of the highest areas ...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 13

A rather miserable, murky November morning - at 7.00 visibility was about two yards. By 9.00 it had largely cleared except for the highest roads. We asked everyone to assess the position when they ar...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 12

.. Our smaller Summer Litter Pick: but – given the amount collected - hopefully all of our 27 pickers (and 2 base team) thought it worthwhile. No snow or bitingly cold wind this time but, rathe...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 11

Snow was forecast, and snow we got. Not the heavy downfall which came later, but regular flurries blown around by the bitingly cold wind. Amazingly 24 volunteers turned out to pick in this, together ...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 10

HEADLINES # 20 Pickers (and 2 Base Team) collected 43 sacks of litter, 4 hubcaps,1 tyre, and miscellaneous items # After sorting, we recycled 420 drinks cans, 291 plastic bottles, 65 glass bottles/ja...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 9

HEADLINES # More collected than we first thought! # 19 Pickers (and 1 Base Team) collected 33 sacks of litter, 2 hubcaps, and miscellaneous items # After sorting, we recycled 178 drinks cans, 183 pla...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 8

HEADLINES # 26 Pickers (and 1 Base Team) collected 61 sacks of litter,1 tyre, 2 hubcaps, and miscellaneous items # After sorting, 691 drinks cans, 509 plastic bottles, 142 glass bottles and jars, and...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 7

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 7 NOVEMBER 2016 Headlines # 16 Pickers (and 2 Base Team) collected 43 sacks of litter,1 tyre, 6 hubcaps, a shower tray, a suitcase, and miscellaneous items # After sor...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 5

Well ………………….. have we turned the corner? We found considerably less litter than during our previous Picks. We manage to clear almost every road in the pari...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 4

More pickers - 27 - than ever before, including a number from neighbouring parishes. We collected a staggering 76 bags of litter, together with a range of larger objects - including 17 hub caps, a ca...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 3

Sunny and dry .......... not at all what we have come to expect for an Otterford Parish Litter Pick! In two hours our twenty four volunteers collected 48 sackfuls of litter, and a range of other th...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 2

Sixteen litter pickers, picking for two hours. We picked up 49 sackfuls of litter, including 393 drinks cans, 432 plastic bottles, and 92 glass bottles for recycling. We also accumulated seven wheel ...

Otterford Parish Litter Pick 1

Our first Litter Pick - 24 sackfuls collected. As much as possible was recycled.

Nearby Groups

These groups are near to you in case you want to contact them for advice, to offer them support or, for example, to share equipment with them.

Beach Cleaning Beasts
Litter picking wherever we go. Sometimes solo or small and large organised group cleans.
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Spark pickers
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Palmers Green Action Team
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Clean Street Exmouth
Clean Street Exmouth endeavours to keep the town clean and tidy by co-opting individuals who volunteer to adopt their street or area. We supply postcards for them to deliver to neighbours which invite them to help keep their street clean on a day-by-day basis. We also supply a postcard which adopters can use to organise 1-hour street cleans involving litter and weed removal. We cooperate with the district and town council cleaning services eg: joint 1-hour cleans to recruit new adopters and to show the improvement residents can make.
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Friends of Kents Moat Recreation Ground
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West Rainton Clean-up Team
The Clean-up Team is part of West Rainton Green Group, which was formed in April 2003. We aim to remove litter from paths, bridleways, road verges and other open space in the vicinity of West Rainton, thereby improving the attractiveness of the local area. The work is undertaken by members of the Green Group in their spare time. We organise about five or six events each year, and members of our team also collect litter on an individual basis from time to time when the need arises. Since the start of the project we have collected 100 - 150 bags a year, and attempt to recycle as much as possible, particularly cans and bottles. Prior to each event contact is made with Durham County Council, who provide a truck to remove all the bags that are collected. We have contributed to national and regional environmental programmes such as Community Service Volunteers 'Action Earth' campaign, City of Sunderland's 'Just Bin It' campaign, Litterfree Durham's 'Big Spring Clean' and the ENCAMS 'Big Tidy Up'. Since 2009 we have worked in partnership with Network Rail to clean up a nearby length of disused railway. As well as litter-picking we also alert Durham County Council and City of Sunderland Council to fly-tipping in the vicinity of the village as soon as it happens. Prompt removal has significantly improved the visual appeal of local lanes and paths. About 300 incidents have been reported since 2003.
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SEEITPICKITBINIT
SEEITPICKITBINIT, has been set up with the aim of bringing local people together to take action in making the kettering area a cleaner community. To donate to our volunteer fundraising efforts, especially for waders and gloves, please contact me via the email link on my group page. This year, after the recent Blue Planet documentary, we'll focus passionately on battling the appalling disaster of Marine and River plastic pollution, throughout the waterways of the Nene Valley. We'll be holding picks every week, raising money for Irchester Animals in Need and recycling as much of the plastic litter as we can, in the River Nene, River Ise and Slade Brook. WE HAVE JUST SECURED SOME CORPORATE FUNDING, SO OUR EQUIPMENT WISH LIST IS LOOKING GOOD. WE HOPE TO BUY A SMALL LITTER PICKING BOAT FOR THE RIVER CAMPAIGN AND SOME SYRINGE PROOF GLOVES. TO SUPPORT SEEITPICKITBINIT'S CAMPAIGN TO TAKE BACK CONTROL OF ENGLANDS RIVERS, ROADS AND GREEN SPACES, YOU CAN HELP US BUY EQUIPMENT OR DONATE TO OUR NOMINATED CAUSE USING THE OFFICIAL PAYPAL LINK FOR OUR GROUP. https://www.paypal.me/seeitpickitbinit Go to paypal.me Go to www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/cleanupmarineplastic Go to www.gofundme.com/marine-plastic-river-rescue-uk SeeItPickItBinIt is a voluntary community litter picking group, based in Kettering Northamptonshire, which has since its creation in 2011, removed and recycled over 10 Tonnes or 10 cars in weight of litter, from our beautiful county. In addition to regular litterpicks on my days off from work each week, every year we hold a 1 Tonne litter pick, which not only aims to clean up the green spaces and river habitats of our community, but also has begun to raise money for charities at the same time. The first two years of sponsorship saw us raise hundreds for Children In Need. This year we have just smashed our litter target with 1270kg and we raised an amazing £500 for a local animal rescue centre in Irthlingborough. The litter situation has never been worse in the history of the United Kingdom. Every day, people dump rubbish from their cars and in the streets. It is difficult to confront, but the heart of the problem can be explained in terms of ownership. The British public has increasingly retreated in to its living rooms, to enjoy its supermarket food, sit on its sofas, in centrally heated houses, fixated on computers, phones or tvs. This life is incredibly comfortable and almost impossible from which to break free. Litter happens because we draw a line at our front doors and our car windows. On the other side of that line is not our problem, so why would we care? Every day we see litter in front of our own doorsteps, on the street and in our parks. Why don't we just pick it up? The reason is because we don't see it as ours, even when it is in our own street, blown from our own bins. Once it crosses that line, we have society's permission to walk by, oblivious and guilt free. One day, I started to see litter. It was everywhere I looked. For years I had complained about it, but I had thought of it as a totally external problem to my life. It's the council, it's someone else's responsibility. One day at work, I did the unthinkable, I got so wound up, I stepped through the invisible forcefield that stops people from departing from the norm. I picked up a plastic bottle and put it in a nearby bin. I almost expected someone to shout at me or to hear sirens, but I didn't. By picking up 1 single bit of litter, I had left that place, better than I had found it, I had already succeeded at making a small, but real difference. After that, I picked up first 10, then 100, then 10,000 pieces of toxic plastic at a time. It felt amazing, my life for the first time, had some meaning beyond feeding my face and being only concerned with maintaining my comfort zone and the comfort zone of those around me. People expressed shock and even warned me that I might get in trouble for breaking the rules. As it turned out, picking up litter has only ever resulted in good things, great conversations, engagement, excitement and encouragement from others, who didn't know such a thing was possible. This year I picked up about 2 Tonnes. During the 2018 litter season, I am challenging myself to remove 5 tonnes. It will definitely not be easy, especially as I've recently lost both parents and my last surviving grandparent. However, litter picking is a way to know that you are part of something bigger, so it helps you through the tough times. Not only does it raise money, it protects and nurtures animals and habitats. Less litter reduces crime and anti-social behaviour, reduces council and government spending. Best of all, it crucially shows others, not just with words, but with concrete powerful actions. I don't think that I'll fix the plastic problem on my own. However any publicity about doing something to tackle a problem that affects us all, is a step in the right direction. Next time you get home and see that plastic bottle or crisp packet in front of your house, just ask yourself, am I a leader or a follower. What happens next will give you the answer. Wonderful news, the McDonalds Drive-In restaurant in Kettering, has generously sponsored 5 bins along Northfield Avenue, in order to mitigate their impact on the community. By working in conjunction with Amanda McDade from Kettering council's street cleansing team, we managed to lobby the food retailer and secured their support in tackling this significant challenge for our community We currently litter pick any area around Kettering and beyond, as and when it looks bad enough to need it. Last years 1 Ton sponsorship raised £500 Nanna's animal shelter in Irthlingborough. This year we hope to raise money for a variety of other litter picking volunteers and groups around the UK. Our focus this year is on river and marine plastics, so we'll be hitting the rivers and lakes, recycling as much as we can, to keep Britain tidy. *********************2017 event target achieved******************** ************************************1270KG**************************** *************************18 picks-100 hours picking**************** **************************Fundraising total £500******************** *************************************************************************** ***********************2018 1 Tonne Litter Pick********************** *********************************92KG************************************ ********************************9 Picks*********************************** *********************Fundraising total £535************************** Future areas of interest will concentrate on the heavy litter problems along the River Ise/Nene and country lanes between Kettering and Thrapston. If you can spare an hour or two, please feel free to email our group to be a part of the next event and help us show that our community is worth caring about. THE A14 FROM WEST BOUND BETWEEN THRAPSTON AND KETTERING IS MISSING, UNDER THE MOUNTAIN OF PLASTIC THAT IS STREWN ALONG ITS VERGES. IF I'M FEELING A BIT CRAZY ONE WEEK, I MIGHT ATTEMPT TO CLEAN IT ALL UP. Every pound that the council doesn't need to spend on picking up litter will be spent on much more deserving projects that effect all of us such as policing, education and health. Several organisations have been extremely helpful in supplying us with bin liners, hi-vis vests and litter grabbers. Many thanks to Amanda McDade, the community litter picking liaison on the council's street cleansing team and to Lindsay Richmond at Helping Hands for the amazing Streetmaster Pro pickers and his much appreciated sponsorship. Please check out the pictures in the gallery, which shows just how much of a difference removing the litter has made at some of the nominated sites. Any help is very much appreciated.
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G A Hird
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Whittlesford Volunteer Network
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Start a LitterAction group

Here at CleanupUK, we want to help you to take LitterAction! Wherever you live in the UK, forming your own community litter-picking group will help to keep your community safer, more friendly and free of litter. It’s lots of fun too. Why not muck in and join us?

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