A litter pick held around Purewell and Purewell Meadows in Christchurch has produced a bike, a pushchair and parts of a fridge amongst items dumped there.
Although there were some large items, the amount of general litter collected was less than in previous years. Councillors and officers of the council were joined by members of the Safer Neighbourhood Team, Homewatch and local residents for the litter pick which was followed by a barbecue courtesy of ward councillors, Cllr Ray Nottage and Cllr Bernie Davis.
The council’s Countryside team was also on hand to conduct a bug hunt in the meadows and ditches with local children.
Cllr Ray Nottage said: “We collected less litter than before which I hope shows that by setting an example we are making a difference. However there was a huge amount of cigarette butts in the kerbs and pavements along Purewell. Clearly the pavements are regarded as the people’s ashtray. Unfortunately the butts including filters take ages to biodegrade and in my opinion could represent a health issue.
“Although we collected less, there’s no room for complacency as there is a small section of our community who still think it’s all right to dump things wherever they like.
“I’d like to thank everyone who turned up to help with the litter pick – it was a very successful morning.”
