Chebogue resident Sundae Wiser noticed the problem of litter while out riding.
“We all bicycle and I just find it so disturbing and got mad at everyone because this is happening,” she said.
“Then I realized that one of the solutions is picking it up.”
Wiser, Wendy Majestic (Chebogue Point Road) and Stephen Sollows (Wyman Road) organized a community cleanup on May 6. They distributed flyers encouraging participation.
Volunteers collected 136 bags of garbage, in addition to miscellaneous items that wouldn’t fit into bags, like wood and metal. Several bags of refundables were also collected.
Some of the more unusual items found included a small safe, open, with money in it. There were Christmas decorations, a 10-year-old election sign, and thousands of fast food containers.
Learning about funding provided through Waste Check was a bonus.
The authority, through its Community Litter Clean-Up Incentive program, will direct $175 per kilometre (up to two kms) to a non-profit group chosen by volunteers when both sides of the road are cleaned.
Wiser’s group chose the Central Chebogue United Baptist Heritage Society to receive $350 after a cleanup on May 6.
Close to two-dozen on the Wyman Road cleaned for SHYFT (Supportive Housing Youth Focus Team) and Dalhousie SOS (Students Offering Support).
Acting waste reduction coordinator Lyndsay Price had received 10 applications for the program as of last week. Funding is for the fiscal year, which runs from April 1 to March 31, 2012.
“Usually we get a lot of applications in early spring and then it quiets down but we may get a few in the fall. It’s very popular right now,” she said.
The Chebogue volunteers question the mindset of those who litter and the impact of a refuse-littered countryside.
“It’s not just a dozen people throwing garbage out of their cars. It’s important for our roadways to be clean in order for people to come visit us,” said Wiser.
“I think it’s indifference in a lot of cases,” said Stephen Sollows.
“It’s such a casual thing, when they throw it out the window,” he added.
Majestic says she picked up 20 to 30 cigarette packages during her clean up.
“How do we send a message that that’s not what people should be doing?” she asked.
She’s also concerned that some of the garbage blown into ditches is in bags tagged with a pink sticker – rejected garbage that has not been separated correctly.
“Our feeling is that the people that are contracted to pick up the garbage, should be stopping and picking this up,” she said.
Sollows says his brother John, who participated in a cleanup in Pubnico, was shocked at the amount of garbage they collected.
“It was a humdinger – it took four hours for 400 metres. It was like picking up garbage in a dump. Apparently it had never been cleaned before,” he said.
For more information on Waste Check’s Community Litter Clean-Up Incentive program, call 902-742-1312.
