Camps Bay residents and Mayor join to pick up litter

 These residents, community groups, homeless people as well as City officials picked up litter at Maidens’ Cove.

More than 50 Camps Bay residents joined Cape Town Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis to clean between the bushes and rocks at Maiden’s Cove beach last Saturday.

So far this year the mayor has joined 13 cleaning projects from Khayelitsha to Bo-Kaap. He also commended corporate companies that are launching clean-up projects in the CBD.

“I think we still have a long way to go to get cultural change in the city and we’re going to have to do this for probably five years. I think we have made a good impact. People are answering the call but we still have a long way to go,” he said.

“When I drive on the N2, I see the Langa and Bonties areas. I see we have a long way to go. The City will do its part. We will provide dustbins and trash collections, we will provide clean-up crews, but residents also have to come to the party. All of us have to take pride in our city,” he said.

The Mayor of Cape Town, Geordin Hill-Lewis, being the change he wants to see in the city.

Chris Storey, the principal of Camps Bay primary, said the clean-up revealed how many people are living within the bushes of Camps Bay and he hopes that this project creates the awareness around taking care of the environment.

“We found a huge amount of rubbish in the bushes and its an indicator of how many people are living rough, that’s homeless, it’s a big wake up call for the residents,” Mr Storey said.

Frances Storey, 24, who joined her dad for the clean-up, said she felt manufacturers should find a sustainable way of making plastic products.

“The people responsible for the making of plastic need to take ownership of it – the lollipop companies and those that sell straws, it is not sustainable to keep on picking up litter when it keeps on being produced,” she said.

The people went amongst the rocks to collect bits of trash.

Homeless people and community organisations joined the clean-up as well, and Ward 54 councillor Nicola Jowell, said they hoped to instil a sense of kinship so they could work together towards eliminating litter.

“We need to get to a stage where we are maintaining a cleaner environment but we need the community to help us do this,” she said.

“One thing we have learnt that the people living in these areas are not averse to being given bags and helping to clean up as well. Of course trying to prevent the litter is the key thing and we have done pilot projects where we provide bags and collect the litter so that we can all live in a cleaner environment.”