Latest clean-up by town river group nets a big '˜catch'

Sure enough, a trolley was among the items collected by members of the Horncastle Group of RiverCare after their latest clean-up.

Fifteen volunteers took part and split into two groups.

One group collected items from the River Waring between the Town Bridge and the junction with the River Bain beside the swimming pool.

The other group focused on the River Bain near Tesco.

Once again, good use was made of extending long-reach rakes and a grappling hook as well as the usual “litter pickers”.

The session yielded:

•17 sacks of plastic bottles, drinks cans, polystyrene food containers and general rubbish;

• 1 bucket of glass bottles;

• 1 shopping trolley;

• 2 traffic cones;

•Various pieces of scrap metal and timber;

•5 footballs and an assortment of tennis, cricket and similar sized balls.

A spokesman for the group said: “It was a goodly collection.

“As with the previous clean up, the morning was bright and sunny but cold and the group were glad to be able to warm up with coffee, tea and biscuits in the Scout Hut at the end.

“The next session will be in about three months, by which time it will hopefully be a bit warmer!”

There is, of course, a serious side to the problem of rubbish in the town rivers with both the Bain and the Waring a haven for wildlife.

Horncastle County councillor Bill Aron and Town council chairman Coun Brian Burbidge have praised the volunteers and said they did a ‘terrific job.’ However, both councillors - and the volunteers - have appealed to people to stop using the rivers as dumping grounds.

*RiverCare is a national organisation under the wing of Keep Britain Tidy and is sponsored by Anglian Water.For details of the next session, ring 01507 525071.