VOLUNTEERS and council staff collected almost 1,000 bags of litter during the 2019 Torfaen Spring Clean.
The six-week campaign, held in partnership with Keep Wales Tidy (KWT), saw volunteers take to the streets to clear up their community.
More than 300 volunteers joined the council’s Streetscene team as part of the campaign.
The clean got off to a great start as more than 600 bags of rubbish were collected by the council from roadside verges along the A4042 and the A472 in early March.
And across the 24 volunteer events across Blaenavon, Cwmbran and Pontypool, a further 342 bags were collected.
The Torfaen Spring Clean litter pick at Cwmbran Boating Lake. Picture: Torfaen Council.
Cllr Fiona Cross, executive member for the environment, said: “It really has been a team effort this year with more people getting involved than ever before. It really does show that the people really do care about Torfaen, and want to make it a clean and green place.
“I live in Torfaen and I’m proud to live here, which is why I want to keep it clean, unfortunately this is not the case for some people. Some of the volunteers who took part came to a lot of events, and it just shows the pride they have too.
“Our resident litter champion Ron Ford and the Torfaen Litter Champions gave fantastic support throughout the spring clean – the Torfaen Litter Champions are out on a daily basis and I’d like to pay tribute to them and also everyone else who’s played their part.
“We’ve been joined by organisations such as the Gwent Police and Crime Commissioners office, a local scout group from Henllys and a lots of schools, colleges, clubs and community groups all getting involved. There are lots of highlights, but one of the standout moments was a song that a girl at Blenheim Primary School telling people exactly what they need to do with litter when they are by her school.
Volunteers clearing litter at the Spar store on Henllys Way, Cwmbran. Picture: Torfaen Council.
“We hope that next year’s spring clean will build on this year’s success but also that people start to think every day about how they can make our borough a cleaner, greener place for all. Only be everyone working together we can really make an impact. You told the council that keeping Torfaen clean and green is a priority, and we are working hard to do this. Thank you everyone.”
Thom Board, Keep Wales Tidy environmental project officer for Torfaen said: “Every year the Torfaen Spring Clean, run in partnership with Keep Wales Tidy and the Spring Clean Cymru national campaign, sees hundreds of caring, pro-active people getting stuck into improving their local environments and it’s always a joy to be part of such a unified movement to take back ownership of our own neighbourhoods and communities and make them cleaner, greener spaces for all.
“Our thanks goes out to every single person who got involved.”
Street cleansing crews targeting the litter on the A4042. Picture: Torfaen Council.
Following the success of the Spring Clean, the council held an environmental volunteering workshop for all existing or new environmental volunteer groups in Torfaen on Saturday, May 11, between 10am and noon at Pontypool Active Living Centre, to discuss the support that the council can provide.
To find out more about environmental volunteering opportunities with the council get in touch with rosie.seabourne@torfaen.gov.uk, or call 01495 762200
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