CHEK Upside: Fernwood litter picker-upper collects 360 litres of trash in three weeks

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David Boudinot is a full-time University of Victoria librarian, and as of this past summer, a part-time volunteer neighborhood garbage man.

David Boudinot is a full-time University of Victoria librarian and, as of this past summer, a part-time volunteer neighbourhood garbage man.

“When the pandemic restrictions set in, I found that working from home I was feeling kind of unhealthy,” said Boudinot.

He started going for daily walks to help stay active and didn’t like what he saw.

“When I looked around, there was a lot of trash and I thought, you know, this trash is eventually, if no one does anything about it, going to end up in the ocean.”

He says that is something he wasn’t going to let happen without a fight.

Boudinot, a volunteer with the Surfrider Foundation, has seen first-hand the devastating impacts waste can have on beaches and the ocean.

Over the past month — with his gloves, trusty claw and bucket — he started a challenge to clean up the entire Fernwood neighbourhood.

Day by day, street by street, Boudinot began keeping a trash tally.

“So the goal is to see how much trash I could pick up in the entire neighbourhood, and so far I’ve picked up, since mid-December, three hundred and sixty litres of trash.”

He’s shared his endeavour online, finding everything from McDonald’s cups to vintage photos to even a flare gun.

“On the walk over here, I found someone’s wallet and somebody came running out of the apartment and realized they had dropped it.”

He’s even found a laptop that he returned to its owner.

Those days, however, are rare. It’s mostly a lot of discarded straws or doggy poop bags.

Boudinot hopes to one day come home empty-handed but understands that’s unlikely, so in the meantime, perhaps his routine will inspire a legion of litter picker-uppers.

“I’m making an effort in this neighbourhood, and I hope others will join me.”

Kevin CharachKevin Charach

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