27 Feb, 2014

Calling all volunteers … Clean Up Australia Day 2014

2014 marks the 10th anniversary of City of Adelaide’s support for Clean Up Australia Day and Council is urging local residents and visitors to roll up their sleeves, don a hat and a pair of gloves and take part in a public clean-up in Ellis Park / Tambawodli on West Terrace (next to Adelaide High School) from 9 am on Sunday 2 March.

More than 80 people are expected to take part in the day, and each will be rewarded with a certificate of appreciation, a bottle or two of iced cold water and a thank you BBQ lunch hosted by Lord Mayor Stephen Yarwood.

“As well as raising awareness about litter reduction, Clean Up Australia Day fosters a great sense of community pride,” said Stephen.

“We owe it to ourselves and to future generations to ensure the natural environment is preserved for all to enjoy. We’re so lucky in Adelaide to have the wonderful Park Lands at our finger-tips,” he said.

Many individuals and groups participate in Clean Up Australia Day year on year and see it as their way of helping to ensure Adelaide’s Park Lands, Squares and streets remain clean and tidy.

Richard Toomer, who leads Council’s Cleansing team knows firsthand the amount of litter left behind in the city streets each day, and the importance of making people aware of the ways their actions can affect the environment for years to come.

“While generally people do the right thing, they really do need to understand that the costs of cleaning up irresponsible rubbish disposal are borne by everyone, and take much needed funding away from other areas of the community.

“During the 2012 and 2013, City of Adelaide collected an average of four-point-seven tonnes of rubbish from streets, parks and illegal dumping each day, which amounts to almost 2000 tonnes of rubbish over the last year alone,” he said.

“Everyone should make a conscious effort to dispose of their litter responsibly for all our sakes. The more resources we have to allocate to cleansing, the less we are able to allocate to other areas of community service, so people are really doing themselves out of services when they litter.”

People who want to be part of the day will be provided with gloves, water and sunscreen at the event and need to wear closed toe shoes. Children under 14 must be accompanied by an adult.

Groups, including schools and community organisations can pre-register by logging onto http://www.cleanupaustraliaday.org.au/Tambawodli+-+Ellis+Park or simply turn up on the day and register.

Note: Lord Mayor Stephen Yarwood will be on site between 11.40am and noon on Sunday.

Rebecca Draysey