Clean teams to be out in force

KEEN to keep the region beautiful? This weekend’s Clean Up Australia initiatives are aiming to rid communities of rubbish and give the environment a helping hand.

Clean-up events are taking place across Ballarat and Golden Plains Shire, with members of the public invited to fill a bag full of litter, or a few, all while meeting their neighbours along the way.

This Saturday, 4 March, Smythesdale community member Dennis Ross is leading his annual sweep of the town, meeting at the Smythesdale Gardens at 9am, and everyone is welcome to assist.

“Smythesdale is pretty clean, but we usually pick up lots of takeaway food containers, drink bottles, cans, and the odd wheel tyre,” he said.

“Down at the skate park and along the highway there is often more rubbish. I’ve been doing the clean-up for a long time, and it is getting worse.

“We just want to do our bit to help keep the community clean.”

On Sunday, 5 March, the official Clean Up Australia Day, the Rotary Club of Wendouree Breakfast will host other local Rotarians, and other community volunteers, for a sweep of Rotary Centennial Park in Lucas, adjacent to Mullawallah Wetlands.

“We encourage people to give us an hour or two on the Sunday morning,” said organiser David Sanders.

“We will have our gazebo up and will be registering anybody that would like to help from 10am until 1pm, and we will have bags, gloves, and safety vests.

“Last year, we had a great morning, and surprisingly we collected some 20 bags of rubbish. There were a mix of people, our local State parliamentary members showed leadership being actively involved, and it was lovely to see young families.

“This year we plan to get teams to clean along Dyson Drive, Link Road, Remembrance Drive, the swamp area, and part of the Ballarat-Skipton Rail Trail.”

Participants are asked to wear appropriate clothes, footwear and sun protection and visit bit.ly/2Bha3tS to find a Clean Up Australia initiative near you.