October 11, 2021 1.48 pm This story is over 44 months old

Over 200 cans and bottles pulled from Lincoln’s River Witham

Plus shopping trolleys and even an inflatable flamingo!
Club members removed a staggering 11 sacks of junk from the upper and lower River Witham in Lincoln. | Photo: Lincoln Canoe Club

Nearly 100 cans, 85 single-use plastic bottles, 52 glass bottles, polystyrene fast food packing, two shopping trolleys, a chair, two odd shoes, a scooter, balls, lighters, and even an inflatable flamingo were pulled from the River Witham during a clean up by Lincoln Canoe Club.

A team of 25 members of Lincoln Canoe Club removed a staggering 11 sacks of junk from the upper and lower River Witham in Lincoln on Saturday, October 9. The clean up was part of the Surfers Against Sewage Million Mile Clean.

The event was also supported by Plastic Free Lincoln, a community organisation working for Surfers Against Sewage to free where we live from single-use plastic. Lincoln Canoe Club also recently became an ally to Plastic Free Lincoln.

The haul of rubbish included 99 cans, 85 single-use plastic bottles and 52 glass bottles | Photo: Lincoln Canoe Club

Chantelle Grundy, Clear Access Clear Waters campaigner from Lincoln Canoe Club, said: “As a club we remove a lot of plastic pollution from our waters when out paddling, which has highlighted the scale of the issue, particularly with takeaway food and drink related packaging.

“This prompted us to think how as a community sports club we could take action beyond our paddle clean ups, by reducing our own use of throwaway plastic and it made sense to become a community ally to Plastic Free Lincoln.

“We have now pledged to remove single-use plastic from our activities, our first one being our tuck shop, which will certainly be a challenge, however we have some fantastic club bakers who make some really tasty home-made nibbles, which is a great starting point.”

| Photo: Lincoln Canoe Club

 

Vanessa Akenga, from Plastic Free Lincoln, said: “Plastic Free Lincoln represents every resident of Lincoln and wants to support all parts of the city to reduce the single-use plastic in their area.

“It’s brilliant to be able to work with a wide range of community groups to understand their activities and offer suggestions for single-use swaps and talk to their members about how we can all work together.”