WATCH: Hundreds of kilograms of garbage was picked up from the shoreline of Victoria’s Harbour on Monday. As Kori Sidaway reports, volunteer garbage collectors found broken glass, discarded tires, and even a mattress.
It’s the pearl of Victoria, home to wildlife, stunning views, and unfortunately, garbage.
“The first year, we’ve had a hide-a-bed couch,” said Victoria Police patrol officer Jim Henley.
More than 50 volunteers scoured Victoria’s Inner Harbour for litter this morning, but they really didn’t have to look too far.
In fact, a record 1,000 pounds of junk was pulled from the shoreline today.
“I have a bit of an oar in here, so I hope whoever lost it isn’t lost at sea!” Clean the Shores volunteer Kimberly Hughes exclaimed during the cleanup.
Henley has headed this event for the last five years, but this years’ debris round-up has him stunned.
“It’s an exceptionally high year for weight,” said Henley.
“We had over 10 buckets of glass. It’s mainly from broken bottles – thousands of them – it’s really amazing how much glass gets thrown on the beach.”
All this scrap found on the shores brings the five-year total to over 3,000 pounds of waste. A number that many find alarming.
“We’ve got feeder creeks that come in here, we have a huge seabird population in this area. But it’s also the jewel of our city, it’s why people come to Victoria. They want to walk around the harbour, they want to kayak, they want to go whale watching. And having a clean place to enjoy all those things is important,” said Henley.
Kori Sidaway
