Hundreds of people participated Saturday in the return of an annual spring clean-up day in Sarnia, on hold for two years amid COVID-19 gathering restrictions.
About 325 people across an estimated 15 to 16 parks scoured bushes, beaches and grass for garbage, said the City of Sarnia’s Rachel Veilleux.
“It’s a little bit down from past years, but honestly I’m pretty happy with the turnout,” she said.
“We really didn’t know what to expect. We’re still trying to get out of this pandemic right.”
The last Community Parks Clean-Up Day in 2019 drew more than 700 people across 24 parks and four sections of the Howard Watson Nature Trail.
Diane Wigchert and members of her family were among those cleaning up Canatara Park Saturday.
Trash was scarce around the bandshell at Canatara Beach, she said.
“Which is a good thing,” she said, noting she and the group have been regular participants in the clean-up event that started in the city in 2015.
Ron Taylor, with the group, said he gets upset seeing sections of the city literate with pop cans and coffee cups.
“If they can’t pick it up, I’ll go pick it up,” he said about what brought him out.
The event is about community beautification as well as getting people to enjoy the city and time with one another, Veilleux said.
Off years, parks staff had more time to tend to parks with there being no events, but there was more trash because of an increase in park users, she said.
“I think there really was a bit of a difference.”
Volunteers Saturday were equipped with gloves, bags, first-aid kits and sharps kits via Nova Chemicals, and Rotary Sarnia-Lambton After-Hours was hosting a barbecue for participants, similar to years past, Veilleux said.
Volunteers in Canatara Park were also given garbage pickers, she said.
Few sharps are typically found during the cleanup, she said, estimating maybe five of the dispersed kits come back with items like needles in them.
“It depends on the park, but generally I would say numbers have always been low,” she said.
The most unusual items tend to come from the nature trail, where crews have found layers and remnants of appliances like stoves, she said.
“We appreciate our partners helping us out and we’re just excited for it to get back,” she said about the event that’s held the Saturday of Earth Week.