World Clean Up Day September 21, 2019

This Saturday, September 21^st is World Clean Up Day and honestly, this planet could use a little help.  Did you know that last year’s World Clean Up Day brought out 17 million people spanning 158 countries? Many people have seen videos or photos of the volumes of plastics and micro plastics floating in our oceans. We are all connected by these waters and as a City that is surrounded by water, the little things we do or don’t do every day have an impact on our environment. We are regularly surprised, amazed and disappointed how much litter is tossed in our local waterways, streets, sidewalks and parks.  Living along the Fraser River in SE Vancouver, we regularly see the total lack of any thought for the urban wildlife that is home to this area.  This area regularly sees visits from hummingbirds, chickadees, sparrows, eagles, hawks, crows, ducks, seagulls, Canadian geese, mink, beavers and most recently a deer along with the odd sea otter sightings.

Seeing the wildlife on a daily basis, residents in this area of Vancouver are passionate about regularly picking up broken glass, garbage, plastics, bottles, cans, fishing line, fishing hooks, straws and much more. There are of course garbage bins around, but for some reason, it’s too much effort for some to carry their own items a few feet to a bin.  Many of us were brought up with Don’t Be A Litterbug, but the more recent generations have had a much stronger focus in school on recycling and protecting the environment. There is a disconnect. We don’t know quite know how that happened as it’s there, we see it daily.  But what IF every resident took 15 – 20 minutes in their own neighbourhood and did bit of a clean up. The City would look a look better. Wildlife would thank you. We would thank you.

You can do something to help make the world a better place on World Clean Up Day, or every day.  Start a new habit, make a commitment to do something different. Donate clothing to a charity or thrift shop. Repurpose something. Fix something instead of throwing it away.  It can be small, small steps is where we all start.  If you are up for tackling something bigger like a neighbourhood clean up, the City of Vancouver has you covered.  To learn more about organizing a clean up or participating in one that’s already organized, visit Clean Up Party.

If you decide to tackle some clean up in your East Van neighbourhood, send us a photo, comment or email, we’d love to hear what you did.

Tags: City of Vancouver, Clean Up, Environment, Global Movement, Neighbourhood, Plastic, World Clean Up Day