Volunteers form human chain to transport 135 bags of rubbish

VOLUNTEERS from Dodder Action and the Dodder Valley Litter Mugs removed 135 bags of rubbish from the Whitestown Stream on Saturday morning – with one volunteer saying the amount of waste was of “biblical” proportions.

The removal of the waste was the culmination of over two weeks’ work for the two environmental groups, who removed the waste from the stream last month, and spent just over a week putting it into bags.

On Saturday morning, a group of 30 volunteers took part in a well-organised operation for the removal of the bags of rubbish.

The group floated the bags of rubbish down the stream, and formed a human chain on the banks of the stream to transport the waste to Whitestown Way to be collected by South Dublin County Council.

Wladek Gaj from Dodder Action told The Echo: “We were shocked about the amount of litter that was there, but we guessed there would be a lot of domestic waste going back many years.

“The actual stream had rerouted itself because it was blocked with waste, so we removed it and unblocked it.”

The removal of the 135 bags of waste on Saturday was the final task that needed to be carried out for the group’s mammoth clean-up, as the group had 75 bags of waste collected by the council in the days before.

According to the Dodder Action group, it was the “largest single clean-up” the group has carried out over its 12-year existence, and each of the bags of litter weighed between 8kg and 15kg.

“It was an amazing success,” added Mr Gaj. “The camaraderie was great.”

Mr Gaj added that he hopes seeing the amount of waste that was removed from the tributary of the Dodder will encourage people who dump litter or household waste in the stream to rethink their behaviour, however he has noticed a decrease in littering over the years.

Waste removed is ‘tip of iceberg’

“We’ve been doing this [at the Whitestown Stream] for three years and we’ve noticed a drop in dumping and a drop in litter – but we can’t be complacent,” he explained.

“We’re seeing less people going with their stuff and dumping it in the stream, it seems to be less acceptable to do it now.”

Looking ahead, the group plans to hold more clean-ups going further up the Whitestown Stream, as the waste that was removed over the weekend is merely the tip of the iceberg for the volunteers.

“The waste, which is primarily household, has emanated – over decades – from the large housing estates upstream,” said Mr Gaj.

“This Saturday’s haul, though many tonnes, is barely scratching the surface.

“We are not even a third of the way towards Killinarden Way. The area is only accessible to persons wearing waders. The scale of the waste is biblical in quantity.

“We’re going to keep going until we get to Killinarden Way. And we want the idea of people going to the stream with a bag of rubbish to

end.”

For more information, follow Dodder Action and the Dodder Valley Litter Mugs on Facebook.