Objects galore
COMING back from our recent cruise we happened on another attempt to get some of the rubbish out of the canals, this time at the Nottingham Canal in the city.
Organised by the local branch of the Inland Waterways Association and Canal & River Trust, it was a very successful canal clean up particularly by the bridge at Nottingham Marina, that is a very handy place to tip rubbish into the waterway.
Two groups
There were 19 volunteers altogether that gathered at Beeston Lock, where after a health and safety briefing they were split into two groups. One group, with life jackets and grappling hooks at the ready, set off on a work boat to pull rubbish out of the canal towards the city centre. The photograph shows the volunteers attempting to get a vending machine out of the water. With the photograph below by Alison Smedley showing extra hands made light work.
Other volunteers set off to do litter picking both in the vicinity of Beeston Lock itself, and between there and Nottingham city centre, including one family group on bicycles, with at least 10 full bags of rubbish being collected.
Large objects
The group on board the work boat, meanwhile, were pulling out some large objects from the bridge holes along the Beeston Cut, and along the Nottingham Canal towards the city centre.
Both groups congregated at the Castle Marina retail park around lunchtime where sandwiches were eaten and a hot drink from the cabin of the work boat was very welcome.
Pulled out
Among the items pulled out of the canal during the course of the day were: numerous bicycles, several shopping trolleys, various types and models of chairs, a skateboard, a mattress, various bits of metal pipework, some fabric, a few road cones, one television set, a cigarette vending machine, a statue of the Hindu God Ganesh, numerous tyres and one ladies thigh-high leather boot. Photograph by Alison Smedley.
Most of the rubbish was unloaded from the work boat at the Canal & River Trust depot at Trent Street Bridge in Nottingham, before the boat returned the volunteers back to Beeston Lock at the end of the day, collecting up yet more rubbish along the way.
Further event
The Inland Waterways Association and Canal & River Trust would like to hold a further event, probably in the spring. Anyone interested in taking part next time is invited to let Alison Smedley, Branch Campaign Officer for The Inland Waterways Association, know on 07779 090915 or by email