News
Severn Trent volunteers clean up West Bromwich canal
28 October 2016
10th October 2016
A team of 13 from water company Severn Trent rolled up their sleeves and armed themselves with litter pickers and bin bags to take on the challenge of cleaning up part of a West Bromwich canal.
The team was working alongside WatersideCare, a Keep Britain Tidy project helping people to look after stretches of their local waterways to reclaim them as vibrant, accessible and pleasant places to spend time.
Corporate social responsibility lead Jess Fidler says: “Helping keep our canals and waterways clean and healthy is just one of Severn Trent’s ambitions and this opportunity gave us the chance to work with WatersideCare, which is a great organisation, as well as making a positive difference to the local environment.
“The team cleared around a half mile stretch of the canal, filling more than 60 bin bags with litter from the banks. Using boats to fish rubbish out of the canal, they found some rather unexpected items, including a barbecue, a tent, and even a toy tractor.
“The team also painted a bench and railings to brighten the area up.”
Severn Trent, together with the Canal & River Trust and The Environmental Agency, help fund WatersideCare groups, which are also part of Keep Britain Tidy.
“We’d like to say a big thank you to WatersideCare for providing us with all the equipment needed for the day, and the whole team was really happy with the outcome because it’s made a real difference to the area. Hopefully users of this stretch of the canal will appreciate the efforts,” said Jess. “We’re really proud of our Severn Trent employee volunteering programme and encourage our people to give up their time and get involved in lots of different community projects.”
Lee Copplestone WatersideCare project officer adds: “WatersideCare are delighted that Severn Trent employee-volunteers joined us for the day cleaning up the canal. The team worked extremely hard gathering huge amounts of rubbish from the towpath and the water. The site looks so much better as a result of their hard work. We would like to thank the volunteers for their enthusiasm, energy and commitment.”