2017 CLEAN UP THE WORLD IS HERE AGAIN!
Organisers of Clean up the World in Gibraltar are pleased to confirm that all plans are now in place for Saturday’s Gibraltar-wide clean-up.
26 Teams will be tackling 24 sites in out of the way, green and marine environments.
In its 13th year running in Gibraltar, the ESG has coordinated this event as part of the inspiring global campaign since 2005. For some years now the theme has been: “Our Place, Our Planet, Our Responsibility”, encouraging personal and community action, displaying civic pride and supporting the agenda for environmental progress in various parts of the world. Gibraltar has also seen this agenda move over the years and we are in a very different place today to where we were when we first began.
Specifically to litter and fly tipping we have seen various old dumps and green areas, saturated with waste, cleared through the extraordinary efforts of volunteers and subsequent follow up and response by authorities.
Areas like Seven Sisters, a hidden jewel located “somewhere behind the dockyard” has seen real hard graft with skip after skip of waste lifted from the enclave by our volunteers with assistance from local agencies and GibDock. It is now a protected site. The Upper Rock has also seen major projects carried out in previous Clean ups in severely degraded hotspots.
More broadly, the campaign pursues a number of objectives to address underlying causes of litter in our community and for the need of better maintenance of our regular sites. Education, Facilities and Enforcement is our focus with the need for a Roving Unit for hotspots on our agenda and for contractors to take greater care when carrying out works and disposing of old or unused materials. After every major clean up fresh reports are submitted to the authorities.
The Campaign has already seen the ESG hold a number of planning meetings engaging the community as well as giving talks at schools. It is an important civic campaign that pulls the community together demonstrating a real love and pride in our natural environment and homeland.
The clean up will be launched by a vibrant Parade departing from Casemates at 11am on Saturday the 23rd September and finishing up at Wellington Front. Some teams will already be out and about tackling various sites around Gibraltar.
The ESG would like to thank its sponsors and supporters in getting the campaign ready to go this year as well as the many volunteers who have signed up once again. It also commends the voluntary efforts being made by individuals, groups and organisations who, year round, are giving their time to look after our natural or historic heritage and hopes this attitude will continue to thrive in our community.
Visit reports and images from past clean ups – click on flickr on our home page
