Litter seems to be a North American constant that we seem powerless to eradicate. I am often appalled at how the area around the Royal Bank Tower in North Battleford looks when a stiff prairie wind arrives to stir things up. Paper, plastic bags and other pieces of flotsam and jetsam of untidy urban living create a spiraling whirlwind of pollution. The sight does not stir up strong feelings of community pride.
To encounter that type of phenomenon in urban Canada is one thing. It's a sight we've become inured to, so much so few think to pick up a piece of trash in their path and deposit it in a garbage receptacle. They didn't put it there. It isn't their problem.
Encountering trash in the wilderness seems more offensive, somehow. For one thing it stands out more. Danica Lorer's adventure on the North Saskatchewan River featured on Page 2 of this edition included encounters with wilderness trash. She describes the shoreline as mostly pristine, with only one discarded household appliance marring the ambiance.
Travelling by canoe doesn't lend itself to removing the offending discarded items, but there is a movement in Canada to do just that.
The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup is a national conservation program that encourages Canadians to make a difference by removing litter from along local shorelines. This national conservation program began in 1994 with a handful of Vancouver Aquarium employees and volunteers who wanted to make an immediate effect on their local shorelines. In 2010, there are currently over 700 cleanup sites registered across Canada, 15 of them in Saskatchewan.
In 2009, nearly 57,000 Canadians registered to cleanup 1,568 sites across Canada. Nearly 161,000 kg of litter was removed from a cumulative distance of 2,500 km of shoreline, which is equivalent to the approximate driving distance from Vancouver to the Manitoba/Ontario border.
In Saskatchewan alone, over 750 people signed up to remove litter from 32 cleanup sites along shorelines last fall. In total, over 1,590 kg of litter was removed from 104 km of shorelines across Saskatchewan, nearly the total weight of three male moose combined.
Whoa, that's a lot of trash.
Those behind the organization report finding many strange things along Canada's shorelines. Some of the more unusual items found in the past include a message in a bottle (the message said, "Please don't litter"), false teeth, a living room set, a canoe made out of duct tape, wedding dress, disco ball, a hotel safe, a toboggan, a mini trampoline and a clothesline complete with poles and pins.
The shoreline cleanup sounds like a wonderful initiative, one the Battlefords and the Northwest should consider embracing. This year's cleanup is scheduled for Sept. 18-26. Visit shorelinecleanup.ca to find out how to become involved. The initiative can also be followed on Facebook and Twitter.
